Revel In Your Time
by Thai Tea Addict
Summary: Sawada Tsunayoshi is born an Omega in a world that expects nothing from his dynamic except submission. Tsuna is many things – hopeless klutz, booksmart-deficient, heir to a bloodline some people would like to keep secret – but, as it turns out, 'submissive' is not one of them. AU - Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamics, All27
1. Quite an experience to live in fear

**A/N** : _I'm alive._ Just moved to China, have been staring at the 3/4 completed chapter of Caught in a Thousand Strings for months, was struck by the need to write an A/B/O story recently and here we are.

WARNING TAG: The first chapter contains a scene of attempted sexual assault on a child. It is plot-relevant and will be dealt with in-storyline. If you are particularly triggered by themes of sexual assault/abuse & consent, this story is probably not for you.

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

* * *

" **Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it?"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

Sawada Tsunayoshi was a forgetful child. It was a trait he'd likely inherited from his mother, his neighbors would mutter to each other; indeed, cheerful Sawada Nana was a prime figure of ditziness, and little Tsuna did so take after his mother. With big amber eyes and pale skin, tufts of fluffy brown hair stuck out from his scalp, untameable with a comb. He smelled sweet, as most young Omega do – an indefinable sweetness, like cotton candy dissolved into the air. Ditziness could be endearing, at least for an Omega, and it wasn't as if an Omega like Tsuna needed to worry about anything outside of his home.

So when Tsuna forgot to bring a handkerchief, it was fine; Shiori-sensei lent him a new one, and made sure to throw it out once he'd used it.

He'd once trotted halfway to school before realizing he was still wearing his house slippers, resulting in a smiling Nana escorting him late to his kindergarten class.

A hundred, a thousand different instances culminated in the impression young Tsuna left on his community: a pitiful little Omega with a head full of fluff.

A forgetful child he may be, but little Tsuna was not always like that. But, of course, he had forgotten that – it just became so hard to hold onto the realization, along with basic coordination and, for a while, even short-term memories.

Because as it turned out, Flame suppression was not an exact science.

So when five year old Sawada Tsunayoshi had his active Flames sealed by a kind old man in a nice suit, under the watchful eyes of who his mother claimed was his father, Tsuna lost more than just his connection to the warmth of his inner fire. The effects were not obvious, and the two men had only stuck around long enough to make sure Tsuna woke up after the fact. Besides, who would notice anything strange in a little child tripping over their own two feet, or forgetting to do basic chores, or zoning out for long stretches of time?

And so for two years, little Tsuna slowly acclimated. No one paid him much mind, because as far as Namimori was conerned, Sawada Tsunayoshi was just a baby Omega with no remarkable features, a head full of air, and with no Alpha in the home.

And as many in his dynamic do: he will present in his teens (late teens if he is lucky, so that he may at least attend school somewhat reliably if futilely, early teens if his notorious brand of 'luck' continues on), and before he reaches his 20th birthday, he will be Mated and happily breeding out children of his own. Hopefully he will keep house as nicely as his Beta mother and his children will be bred from an Alpha with better mental faculties.

This is the future expected of Sawada Tsunayoshi.

It promptly dies on a late afternoon in chilly October, when Tsuna is seven years old.

Tsuna is playing alone at the neighborhood park; he was not alone ten minutes ago, when Takao-kun and his mother were near, but the other boy claimed he didn't want to be friends with "dumb Tsuna" and complained to his mother he was hungry. The woman had glanced between her son and the young Omega child he'd left behind in the sandbox, but experience with other Omega told her that Tsuna would just run on home with no one in the park left to play with, and so she left with her son in tow.

Tsuna would have left, as it was getting cold and his mother was likely almost finished preparing dinner, but his large amber eyes catch on the blazing orange of an autumn sunset, something – pleasant? unpleasant? – sparking in his chest but dying before it could even dare dredge up something in his mind.

A passing whim, a lingering thought – these delay Tsuna for an extra 20 minutes, but 20 minutes was all it took. A child, no matter Omega or Beta or Alpha, would not be able to gauge others with their senses until they properly presented – that is, went through puberty when their first and secondary genders fully developed. They could recognize by scent if a person drew close to them, but strangers had no business coming into such close contact with children, Omega children especially.

A sharp scent, one that Tsuna cannot properly describe because it's the first time he's confronted with a full-grown Alpha's aggression, a pheromone so thick that it stuns Tsuna into compliance. The spark has returned, beating as hard and fast as Tsuna's heart, but it is intermittently smothered like a candle in turbulent wind.

Tsuna is dragged out of the sandbox and into a bruising hold. He's carried away from the park, from view, into trees and shrubbery that block Tsuna's view of anything familiar. Tsuna does not know that this is because the Alpha male has no quick getaway, spurred into action by the sight of an Omega so small and vulnerable and alone, that this isn't even a planned abduction, only a spur of the moment cruelty brought on by opportunity.

So Tsuna is dropped onto the ground, because while it is known Omega crave gentle touch and soft surfaces, it does not register because it does not matter. Tsuna does not matter. He was nothing more than an opportunity snatched up.

The Alpha's pheromones are stifling, so much that Tsuna thinks he may choke on them. It is hard to move, but the point is moot when the Alpha's hands descend on him with vicious expectancy.

An Omega child does not have the strong pheromones developed that could help soothe a riled-up Alpha. Those were developed after they'd "presented" – the equivalent of a puberty for their second gender. For Tsuna's dynamic, that meant fully-developed scent glands that would be able to emit pheromones that could denote his emotional and physical state, a scent meant to entice prospective mates, and when the time came, catch the scent of the one he mated with to showcase their claim. His body would also fully develop, his genitalia fully-formed, able to self-lubricate and bear children.

An Omega child lacked the fully-formed uterus, the self-lubrication formed from their glands, the ability to emit their own distinctive scent outside of a mild sweetness that only turned biting when they were in distress but could not extend more than a couple meters from their body.

The Alpha's pheromones are screaming but Tsuna's cannot respond because he is a child, too young to do much more than whimper. Hands pull at his shirt, ripping fabric with their clawing ferocity, and the spark in Tsuna's chest flashes with a startling but familiar heat that momentarily clears the choking pheromones in his nose, just enough for Tsuna to draw in a breath to wail.

A growl is felt more than heard, a large hand clamping over Tsuna's mouth that robs his ability to breathe. The fire in Tsuna's chest blazes, swirling like a tightly-contained maelstrom, a voice whispering in young Tsuna's mind that ' _I'm going to die, I'm going to die_ ', his very own funeral dirge as an Alpha attempts to take more from Tsuna than just his life.

Hot, desperate breath ghosts over the sensitive flesh of Tsuna's neck, and even though he does not fully understand it, the flame in his chest is climbing further up just as teeth clamp down in an attempt to claim him.

To mark an Omega, an Alpha need only bite down on any exposed flesh and inject some of their pheromones into the Omega. A grown Omega would meet the pheromones with their own, their body would acclimate to the invasion, and depending on the circumstance – if willing, one bite may be enough to lay the Claim; if unwilling, the chemical make-up of the answering Omega pheromones could conflict with the invading Alpha's, allowing a short period where the Omega's body could actively reject the Claim.

To accept or to reject was a moot point for Omega children, because their bodies were not developed enough to meet the foreign invaders. It would cause an adverse reaction, their pheromones too weak to fight and their undeveloped bodies unable to answer the Claim. And so in answer, with a near 90% rate – Claimed Omega children died within the first hour.

On a late October afternoon, Sawada Tsunayoshi does not die.

But the seal on his Flames does.

There is heat, intense and overflowing, and it takes everything with it: the scent, the view, the sounds, and the feeling. More importantly, it takes the Alpha with it – it is too sudden and too violent, a scream aborted before it could even make it out of the Alpha's jaw. The pheromones, the disgusting poison lodged into Tsuna's throat from a weeping wound, attempt to convince a convulsing and unwilling body to submit, but Tsuna cannot feel the pain; the flames are everywhere, inside him and outside him, a blazing orange fire more comforting than even the softest cocoon of blankets.

The flames burn everything related to the stain on Tsuna's skin: flesh and bone are disintegrated in unrelenting orange, and only when the threat is gone do the flames retreat back into Tsuna, a warm glow in the cavity of his heart.

There is a bleeding Mark on his throat, terror laden in his bones, and a vague threat of ' _submit, submit_ ' lingering in the scent still scorched into his throat. (Deep inside, the flame whispers " _no_.") Tsuna knows what has happened, laid out on the forest floor covered in bruises. He sits up.

Tsuna knows what he has done.

But he doesn't want to, and so his memory does something very strange.

It allows him to forget.

For now.

* * *

Sawada Nana is a Beta, like her parents before her and their parents before them. A long line of Beta, which is perfectly fine for Nana – Betas make up the majority of the population, after all, and as romantic as the daytime dramas she sometimes enjoyed made Alpha-Omega relationships out to be, she was perfectly happy with her own fairytale romance.

Iemitsu was her own roguish Beta prince charming, with an infectious smile and hands calloused from work. He could not spend as much time at home as he would like, but Nana was a very understanding person, knew that his job was important to him and she had married him under no delusions that he'd be able to stay at home. She had even known a child would not change that.

She had hoped with a child, though, she would feel...less lonely about it. Her prayers were answered once she'd learned she was pregnant, and months spent waddling around with her own special gift was heaven.

It still was, even as she held the squirming bundle of her baby boy in her arms, listening as the nurse filled out the paperwork with Nana's input.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, son of Sawada Iemitsu and Nana.

Male.

Omega.

As far as Nana knew, there were no Omega in Nana's line. At least, not for three generations; she wasn't as up to date on her own lineage. Iemitsu had cooed at the bundle in her arms, as in love with their son as she was, but the quiet look in his eyes likely matched her own.

An Omega. A dynamic meant to be protected, meant to submit, fragile and delicate and weak. Every citizen in Japan learned about dynamics throughout their years of schooling, but it essentially boiled down to this: Alphas were meant to dominate and succeed, Omegas were meant to submit and breed, and Betas were meant to fill in everywhere they could.

Nana had baby-proofed the house far before she'd given birth, but when she returned home with baby and husband in tow, they'd had to Omega-proof it too. An increase in soft things – blankets and plush animals and pillows and blankets – soft detergent, lighter colors, anything Nana could get her hands on that Parenting Omega books recommended.

Iemitsu had helped, of course, but his work came calling for him once again, so Nana kissed him on his cheek and raised Tsuna's delicate, chubby wrist to mock a farewell wave as Iemitsu left once more.

Nana was ditzy and a bit of an airhead, but she was an excellent homemaker. Tsuna grew under her doting hands, and her shy but adorable toddler turned into a ditzy, clumsy child with flyaway hair and wide amber eyes.

' _Our little Tuna-fish is too cute,'_ Iemitsu once remarked, grinning widely as his boss played with their 5 year old son in the yard.

' _You're going to have your hands full with mating applications, once Tsu-kun finally Presents,'_ Nana had giggled. Nana wasn't conceited but she knew she was pretty – and their son had definitely taken after her.

Iemitsu mocked a scowl. _'No one is good enough for our Tsu-kun!'_ he declared.

Nana had laughed.

Mating applications were formal, slowly falling out of style with the next generation, but a traditional, hard-working man like Iemitsu would never consider anything else for their son, Nana knew.

Omega mated young. Nana had only known – not personally – a handful of Omega during her time in high school. After they'd presented, they'd been inundated with Mating offers; of the seven in her school, only two had graduated. She'd never seen any in her college. Less than 10% of Omega in Japan attended higher education, though, let alone graduate with degrees.

Omega were expected to settle down and have children. Nana, in one of her many whimsical moods, had once thought she would have made a good Omega: a gifted homemaker and unfailingly loyal wife to her husband. She believed this was why she would not have much difficulty raising an Omega child.

She'd read up on all she could of Omega children, from newborn to preteen; lately she'd been perusing Omega teen and young adult parenting books, intent on making sure she'd be ready when it came to Tsuna presenting and helping him choose a suitable mate.

Tsuna was gentle and delicate. When he outgrew some of his clumsiness, she'd start teaching him to cook, would start assigning him more chores so that he could grow used to tending a home. He was cute, with his large amber eyes and soft, fluffy hair; Nana thought (rather biasedly) that Tsuna would make a fine Omega husband.

This idea died one early evening in October, to the background smell of perfectly cooked oyako-donburi.

She heard the door creak open before being quietly closed once more. Tsuna was quiet but messy – something Nana had planned on rectifying once Tsuna was able to reliably fold his own laundry by himself.

"Tsu-kun, welcome home!" Nana called out. There was a slight chiding quality to it; Tsuna should have remembered to announce his return but her son really was just so forgetful.

There's no reply but there are soft footsteps. Nana finishes plating their dinner just as Tsuna's gentle, sweet scent reaches her – this alone causes her to turn around. There's no reason for Tsuna's scent to extend so far but her Beta nose is unable to parse out the undercurrents as easily as a grown Alpha or Omega could. But she is a mother before anything, and her heart reminds her of this as it hammers in her chest before her gaze falls on her only child.

"Mama," Tsuna says, voice weak and amber eyes locked somewhere on the vicinity past her head. Sticks and dead leaves are caught in his unruly tresses, his pants are stained with dirt and soot, the nice pastel blue sweater she'd bought for him last week is ripped from his right shoulder to his collar, where blood seeps into the fabric. "It hurts."

Nana rushes forward, adrenaline in her veins and horror on her face. There is no room for disbelief, not while her child is injured and smelling of-

Nana is scared to touch but her eyes find the angry, bleeding red of the Mark so clearly torn into Tsuna's neck. A messy, cruel thing – meant to subdue, meant to hurt. Tsuna's pale skin stands out all the more because of it.

She can smell it, no matter how weak her senses. An Alpha's Mark.

The sobs get stuck in her throat. _This can't- Not her Tsuna-_

"It hurts," Tsuna repeats, quieter, and now there are tears in those gorgeous amber eyes.

Nana's on the phone, counting the minutes.

How long does Tsuna have before the Alpha's claim kills him?

* * *

An ambulance brings Tsuna to an Omega-designated ward of the general hospital. Nana sits at her wailing child's bedside as doctors and nurses bustle in and out; they are gentle in every approach to her son, treating him like shattered glass and murmuring amongst themselves about the Mark on his neck.

Tsuna says he doesn't remember. He was at the park playing in the sandbox, and then he was standing in the foyer of his home; whatever happened in between is a mystery to him. The doctor said it was shock, and though they do not want to push it, they also feel the window of opportunity on finding the monster who would do this closing with every passing minute.

A near 90% fatality rate. That was the result of an Alpha mark on an Omega child.

Tsuna had returned home at 5:14PM. It was now just five minutes past six.

Most died within the first hour. Some lasted a couple hours more.

A Beta nurse had the time stamped somewhere on the forms. There was nothing they could do – pumping Tsuna full of more pheromones would only further wrack his body, and anesthesia would work in the Mark's favor – killing him quicker than anything. The only thing they could do was put him in the softest bed, prop him up on the softest pillow, cover him in the softest blankets, and wait for his body to give up on him or win.

Almost 90% of the time, the Omega child did not win.

Nana's hands are shaking and her eyes are dry. Too dry, and she blinks to bring the room and Tsuna back into focus. Outside of the room, just in range of Nana's hearing, two doctors and a nurse are debating on whether they should suggest euthanizing Tsuna so that he'd no longer be in pain, or let him continue to try and fight just so that they might have more time to glean information from him about the attacker.

Nana's eyes fall on Tsuna's frail wrists, leading into small, pale hands. She wants so badly to hold him, to gather him up and hold him just as she had when he first came into the world. Tsuna is not sleeping – he's in too much pain, and instead his eyes are focused on the TV blearily. A children's cartoon is playing, a cartoon bear singing something about the colors of the rainbow. He slowly mouths along with the words but his eyes refocus back on Nana when the commercials come on.

"I like orange," he says. It seems to cause him pain and brings attention to the bandages wrapped around his throat.

Nana forces a smile onto her lips but it wobbles dangerously. "Me too, Tsu-kun," she murmurs back. "It's a lovely color."

She watches him avidly, obsessively. She does not want the last words he hears from her to be about colors, his favorite or not. She wants to cry but knows she can't, not as long as Tsuna is still fighting.

Iemitsu had given her two numbers to memorize in case she ever needed to contact him. One connected directly to his phone mailbox; all calls were returned within three hours if she left a message there. She'd used it once before, when she'd needed to ask Iemitsu for proof of employment when enrolling Tsuna in his kindergarten.

The second number was for emergencies only. She'd never used it before tonight. She'd called it for the first time as Tsuna was rushed into ER. It had rung twice, before there was a click and young woman's voice filtered down through the receiver in cool, professional tones.

"What is your emergency?" No greeting, no explanations – all business.

"Is- This is Sawada Nana," Nana choked out.

"We know who you are, ma'am," the other woman stated. "Please tell me your emergency."

This was not the voice of a person who worked on a construction site. But Iemitsu had given her the number, and Nana trusted him.

"Tsu-kun – my son, Tsuna, he- He..." The words were so hard to say, she could not get them to leave her throat. "H-He's in the hospital. Namimori General. Please, tell Iemitsu – tell him he has to come home. He has to come home _right now_."

"...Ma'am, why is your son in the hospital?" the woman had lost the glacial tone, but rigid professionalism lined her words. Oddly enough, it was more calming than not.

But the words still could not come.

An Omega's worth was dependent on their breedability. They needed good genes: attractive looks, intelligence, no known deformities or conditions. The younger, the more virile; the purer, the higher the pedigree.

Tsuna was seven years old, and he'd been violated through the Mark on his throat.

"Because he's dying," Nana said into the receiver, and then hung up before she would be asked to explain why.

Shame bit into her gut.

* * *

Five hours later, Sawada Iemitsu storms into the Omega wing of Namimori General Hospital, flanked by a handful of Betas in suits. Nana sobs into his chest as a doctor explains why his son is sleeping fitfully in a room paces away.

Friday morning, Tsuna wakes up to his parents on either side of his hospital bed. A nurse steps in to check his vitals once more. There is an air of shock that nearly swallows the relief radiating from his parents' faces at the sight of his amber eyes.

Saturday morning, Sawada Tsunayoshi is checked out of the the hospital. There are bandages wrapped around his throat, hiding bruised flesh.

The physical wound will heal.

The psychological one will not.

* * *

 **End Chapter 1**

* * *

 **A/N** : _Very_ disturbing themes.

 _Notes on Tsuna:_ Just as in canon, the Ninth sealed his Flames when he was a little kid. But given the assault and near-murder of Tsuna when he was seven, his flames reacted - as he really would have died had they not. They'd lashed out and killed his assailant, which is what pushed Tsuna over the edge: he'd been assaulted, almost murdered, and then he killed someone all within the span of about 20 minutes.

- **"...and so his memory does something very strange. It allows him to forget."**

This is not Flame-related or anything - it is just human psyche. Tsuna repressed his own memory of the attack. This will be dealt with in-storyline.

 _Notes on the A/B/O 'verse_ : Most will be answered in storyline, but for this 'verse in particular - unlike in other A/B/O 'verses, this one considers 'presenting' as more a second puberty. When people are born, you can immediately tell their second gender; they just don't have fully developed parts until their teens (much like puberty), and people call this process 'presenting'.

Feel free to review with any questions or concerns.


	2. But you're not helping

**A/N** : I see you and appreciate you, all my regular readers.

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own _Katekyou Hitman Reborn_.

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

* * *

" **The tortoise lays on its back, its belly taking in the hot sun,**

 **beating its legs, trying to turn itself over but it can't.**

 **Not without your help. But you're not helping.**

 **Why is that?"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

An Omega by their nature is already weak and delicate; they needed high levels of physical contact with others just to be a functioning member of society. Maintaining high levels of physical contact came to be seen as a sign of weakness – after all, without relying so obviously on others, Omegas could not hope to cope with even daily necessities. The result was the Omega dynamic being stereotyped as frail and sickly, which even after years in which the dynamic's needs began to be more publicly addressed in order to decrease Omega fatality rates, it was a notion that pervaded to the youngest generation.

More recent fields of research were looking into the statistics in which an Omega's needs are exploited and abused by other dynamics; it is far too easy for an Alpha to claim they were only doing something for an Omega's benefit, whether or not it was consensual. If the Alpha laid a strong enough Claim, they could argue that the Omega needed them – needed to be "fucked into better health."

Not much research had been done into bonds between Omegas and Betas, or Omegas and Omegas. A Beta was considered a substandard substitute for a mate to an Omega; it was regarded as a shameful yet public secret, and couples were careful not to flaunt their status. It was different in cases of Beta parents and Omega children; the Beta parents were still considered only substitutes, until a preferably Alpha mate was eventually found for the Omega.

An Omega-Omega intimate relationship was nigh unheard of. It was considered forbidden, illegal in most countries except for Canada and some Nordic states, who have particularly vocal Omega groups fighting to further their rights. An Omega-Omega intimate relationship was too 'seductive', as it had been argued; the resulting pheromones would be too much for any Alpha to bear without trying to squeeze in, which would have resulted in a harem-like relationship should the Alpha lay Claim on the Omegas involved. The relationship between Omega parents and their Omega children were considered perfectly acceptable, until the child came of age and could be Mated off.

Sawada Tsunayoshi was known for having two Beta parents. His mother served as an acceptable substitute for physical affection, and any who knew of sweet Nana knew she could deliver. As a young boy, Tsuna had thrived under his mother's hands, enjoying her single-minded attention for years.

This changed, as most things had after that one October night.

Returning home with bandages wrapped around his throat, Tsuna had slept uneasily for several nights. Nana and Iemitsu had been advised to spend as much time with their child as possible, to often show him physical affection to ensure his body registered he was safe. The doctor had also advised finding an Alpha surrogate but the suggestion died at the look of fury eclipsing Iemitsu's face, and the doctor wisely did not push.

They'd stayed with Tsuna throughout the days and nights. He'd been excused from school, Iemitsu spinning some story about a family emergency that their community easily bought. ( _"That poor Sawada boy,"_ the neighborhood ladies would shake their heads. _"Too much emotional strain for an Omega tyke.")_ Iemitsu had also promised to take care of the hospital staff, and Nana believed in him desperately; there were no rumors, no news reports about a young Omega child assaulted in the evening. The incident was quiet, disappearing into the air just like Tsuna's attacker.

Iemitsu had not yet returned to work but he'd take calls on his phone and disappear into their bedroom from time to time, arguing vehemently but quietly into the receiver. He'd been granted leave, he said, but Nana could tell by the look in his eyes that it wouldn't be for long. But still, he was here now, and it was the 'now' she had to take care of.

Tsuna seemed...almost normal, after he'd returned home from the hospital. He still couldn't remember the incident that had landed him there, didn't understand why his parents were so sad, and seemed only annoyed by the bandages around his throat. He played games with Iemitsu, watched TV with Nana, sat tucked into their arms as Nana read him stories or Iemitsu played with his hair.

He was still quiet, or at least, on the quieter side. A bit more jumpy as well, unlike the near-lethargy he'd had before; his eyes would flick from corner to corner, and he seemed to sense when people drew too close to their home. His form would grow still and his eyes would lock onto the door, long moments before the mailman dropped by or a concerned neighbor rang the buzzer.

Nana could not will herself to check out the books she thought she may need to deal with this new development. Instead, Iemitsu had bought some online, and then just as quietly slipped his purchases into their bedside drawers. She could not bring herself to read them, not yet, and she excused this weakness by busying herself with nurturing Tsuna as best she could.

Finally, two weeks into this horrible fever dream, Iemitsu could no longer put his work off. Nana knew it was coming – he was the bread-winner of the family, after all, and the fact that he'd been there for as long as he'd been was more a miracle than anything. Nana knew she could not keep him, but still, the desire for him to stay was suffocating.

"We'll be fine," she said instead, looking into her husband's eyes. If she said it enough times, she may even start to believe it herself.

Iemitsu drew her into a hug, swallowing her petite frame. "We will," he agreed quietly, his voice as close to tears as ever.

He'd promised nothing of the sort would happen again. He had favors he'd called in, he'd said; nothing and no one would hurt their son again. Nana believed him.

Iemitsu left, promise made and with every intention of keeping it.

It was broken five days later.

Tsuna was wrapped in a fuzzy orange blanket – Nana had made sure to buy more orange articles – and staring vacantly at the TV. Nana had just finished putting the dishes away, as acutely aware as ever: the sound of the children's show in the other room and the gentle breeze blowing in through the open window. She moved into the living room, eyes instinctively latching onto her child.

Her wristwatch chimed, a digital reminder she herself had set: _Tsuna_. She timed their cuddling, even though most of the time, she was already doing so. But she would not leave it to chance, wanting to make sure her son was never left wanting. The wound on his neck had healed; the bandages were gone now, the Mark nothing more than a few stray scratches that could almost look like an accident with a sharp object. She planned to wait another week until the very last of it was gone, and then Tsuna could resume attending school. He still appeared to not remember anything about the attack, the excuse of shock no longer working in the face of it. The idea that Tsuna was psychologically damaged in some way was too painful to Nana bear, and even Iemitsu's presence had not been enough to bolster her. He'd taken some of the mental health books with him when he'd left for work, leaving only a couple for Nana to read when she finally felt ready.

Nana took a seat on the couch next to her child. She reached out, intending to draw him closer as usual. The doctors had said her scent would calm him, would reassure him of his safety. Tsuna had been confused when her and Iemitsu had first started this; he was used to physical affection but never to such a zealous degree, but after all this time, he just regarded it as normal for them now. A child could make a million excuses so long as it fit into their version of the world, and Tsuna seemed content to live in a version where the assault on his person had not happened.

So it came as a shock when her boy's voice rang out, sharp and demanding: _"Don't."_

Nana flinched back, more from surprise than hurt. "Tsu-kun?" she asked unsurely, hand partially outstretched but not making contact.

"...I'm sorry, Mama," Tsuna finally said, eyes on her as he edged further away, as far as their small couch would allow. "But please – _don't touch me_."

The words were hard to understand because it was such an abrupt change. She wanted to argue with him. Even if he did not fully understand it, surely he could _feel_ it – the way his body craved physical touch, craved reassurance. She may not be Alpha but she was family, and that should be enough. (Please, _please_ \- let it be enough.) An Omega needed physical contact to maintain health and vitality. Without it-

Without it, Tsuna would be _sick_.

"Don't touch me," Tsuna said again, hunched in on himself, allowing the blanket to swallow him. He was pale and thin and small, as he'd always been. The scabs on his neck were reminiscent of blood spatter.

 _Do you remember?_ Nana wanted to ask. Did he remember what happened to him, what happened in that park when he was alone and vulnerable? Was that why he was now recoiling from touch? She wanted to tell him it would be okay now, that his father had promised them that nothing would hurt Tsuna ever again.

But Nana said nothing, because looking at her child now, she could see it - that Iemitsu had lied.

After all, how could they hope to protect Tsuna from himself?

* * *

 **Seven Years Later**

* * *

Reborn is no stranger to favors.

For a hitman, he'd lived quite a long life; now as an Arcobaleno, it seemed twice that. His cursed baby body is not enough to stop his work from progressing though, and so when an old friend calls in a favor, Reborn obliges. The pay promised was good, the premise something he's done before, and he rather liked the person asking.

Or he did, until he entered the office of the Vongola Nono and found Sawada Iemitsu lounging in an adjacent armchair.

Reborn feels like he knows where this is going but also knows better than to make assumptions – those could kill lesser men. Timoteo was getting on in the years and the issue of inheritance was a big one in the mafia. The Vongola had found itself lacking in proper heirs, according to Reborn's network: the Ninth's three eldest sons had all died, and the last was...no longer fit to inherit. This had left some of the peripheral members wondering, and other famiglia eyeing the possibility of a power vacuum in Italy with increased interest.

Thus, when Timoteo called in a favor to Reborn, asking for him to groom the next heir to the Vongola crime family in much the same way he'd done for the Cavallone, Reborn had agreed.

Sawada Iemitsu was a complication.

The head of the CEDEF was no stranger to Reborn, and he'd interacted with the Young Lion of Vongola often over the years. They'd never talked about private matters because for all his faults, Iemitsu was not an idiot willing to blabber about his family to all who would listen – their safety was too important to him. The only reason Reborn even knew the Beta male had a family was because he's, well, _Reborn_.

But for Iemitsu to be in this room, this meant he was personally involved in the selection process for the prospective Vongola Decimo. Reborn knew the Vongola Primo had fled to Japan following the Secondo's coup, and he – among many others – highly suspected there to be a second line, but the Vongola had followed the Secondo's line for hundreds of years. To go back to the Primo's line was a move of desperation.

" _Buon giorno_ , Reborn," Timoteo greeted him with a smile.

The Ninth carried such a noble presence, befitting the head of a crime family and an Alpha. Reborn tempered his instincts; as an Alpha on foreign territory, he was expected to show respect to the other male. This was not a hard feat, as Reborn truly did respect him, even though his instincts – correctly – knew he could defeat the older man if pushed.

But he wasn't here for primal instincts, he was here for a job. Reborn was not a man ruled by instinct.

" _Buon giorno_ ," Reborn returned with a tip of the fedora. It was the only concession he would allow to show.

Timoteo showed no adverse reaction to it but there was a small, practically minuscule flare in his pheromones. _This territory is mine,_ it seemed to ring. _These people are mine. Abide._

Reborn did not react. Iemitsu made the smallest movement of restlessness.

"Thank you for taking this job, Reborn," Timoteo continued, sliding a simple manila folder across the desk. Reborn approached cautiously, but not out of concern – just respect. Moving too fast would be aggressive, and so he moved and picked up the folder with practiced ease and at a comfortable gait.

Both Vongola men remained quiet as Reborn opened the file to peruse its contents, confirming most of what he'd suspected. Another bloodline in Japan, descended from Vongola Primo himself; Sawada Iemitsu really was descended from the Vongola bloodline, but Reborn knew that his role as head of CEDEF disqualified him as candidate.

Sawada Iemitsu had a son.

Reborn did not allow the surprise to show. Not that it was surprising that Iemitsu had a son – Reborn had suspected he'd had a child, given his presence in the office for this very meeting – no, the surprising thing was what the Beta male had spawned.

An _Omega_ child. An Omega would inherit the Vongola crime family?

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," Reborn read aloud. "A strong name."

Iemitsu stood, his stance neither defensive nor aggressive; he was beaming but Reborn was not fooled. Only idiots believed that the Young Lion was as harmless as his grin belied. "My little Tsu-kun _is_ strong!" he chortled brightly.

"I'll make sure of it," Reborn agreed blandly.

This assignment would prove to be very interesting then. It wasn't as if Reborn had never seen an Omega crime boss before, but the circumstance then had been wildly different. After all, Luce was...different. _And a moot point,_ Reborn reminded himself. Death was the greatest equalizer of all.

"Tsunayoshi is a sweet boy," Timoteo spoke up warmly. _A civilian Omega_ , came the unsaid statement. "He has a lot of promise. We believe he will make a stronger Vongola."

 _Make a stronger Vongola._ The interest dimmed a bit as Reborn understood the implications; he was meant to groom Sawada Tsunayoshi into the Vongola Decimo – but not to lead the Vongola, only to further it. It was not an uncommon tactic, and though it had not happened in the Vongola before, there were cases in some Triad or smaller mafia families where blood inheritance fell into the hands of an Omega. If there were no other blood alternatives, the families opted with the most natural outcome: have the Omega mate with someone they felt worthy of the line, and then their child could be considered the _true_ leader of the family. Of course, the Alpha mate chosen for the Omega would have to be worthy, and assume most of the responsibilities of leading the group until the child came of age.

Sawada Tsunayoshi would not be the real leader of the Vongola, but he would _breed one_.

Reborn flipped through the report on the boy. A bit on the small side, even for an Omega; Reborn would have to get him fit if he was to bear strong children. His grades were abysmal, he had no friends noted, and – fortunately – he had yet to present. Flipping forward more, he came across hospital records.

. _..hm,_ Reborn thought. He looked up to meet Iemitsu's eyes, who gazed back at him with grim expectancy.

"He survived," Iemitsu stated after a moment, voice carefully controlled. It was a good thing the blonde was a Beta; that kind of tone coupled with any amount of pheromone would have sounded threatening.

A 90% fatality rate. It seemed Primo's blood was a godsend for Vongola's last hope. "Who else knows?" Reborn asked. There were no other notes on the incident, no police report or follow-up examinations. It was common for families of Omega victims to keep such incidents quiet, not wanting to ruin their children's chances of finding a good suitor.

"His mother, Nana," Iemitsu responded. "Doctor Ishigaki, Doctor Itou, a few nurses, and Hibari Sasako."

The hospital staff was expected, of course, but the last name – it wasn't included in any report. Reborn turned an expectant look on Iemitsu.

"The Hibari family have a peculiar view on Namimori," Iemitsu said. "They're rather protective of their town. Even if we had sent independent investigators, they'd be bitten to death if they couldn't provide a reason for being there."

Reborn flipped through the pages once more. Nothing, no indication of a completed job. It meant either two things: one, the assailant had been found and _erased from existence_ , or two...

"We never found them," Iemitsu said, a tightness to his eyes. Killing intent clung to his skin, tightly coiled, not lashing out but undeniably present. If there ever was a sore subject to bring up with the Young Lion, this was definitely it.

Outside of this one-page report and a handful of people, however, it was clear no one knew. This worked in their favor, and so Reborn knew Timoteo would prefer to keep it that way. Reborn would just have to groom Tsunayoshi into such a desirable mate that one black spot in his record would mean nothing.

Reborn was certain he could.

"Anything else about Tsunayoshi?" Reborn asked, not expecting much. Iemitsu would have put what was necessary in the report on his son, and Reborn would do his own reconnaissance anyway. Everyone already knew this.

Iemitsu smiled. "Tsu-kun is a sensitive boy," he said cheerfully. "Please be gentle with him."

Reborn snorted.

* * *

Namimori was a quaint place. The lifestyle was slow, almost peaceful had it not been for the underlying claw of strength that screamed 'Hibari'. Reborn was interested in the family that apparently Sawada Iemitsu had trusted enough to investigate his son's assault but Hibari Sasako had died years ago, leaving a Beta husband and Alpha son behind. The investigation died with her, but not the seat of power the Hibari family held in Namimori.

According to Reborn's sources, the Alpha woman's child was running something of a Disciplinary Committee in his junior high school, but from the description of the group, it sounded more like a crime syndicate than school activity. Reborn mentally filed that away for further research; an Alpha male from his hometown would be a good candidate for mating Tsunayoshi, and if the Hibari boy was as strong as the rumors suggested, there may not be anyone better in this town.

Of course, getting worthy Mate candidates for his new student would be more than half the struggle; the picture attached to Tsuna's file was months out of date, showing only a young boy with wide eyes and petite build. Cute, in a general way – but that wasn't enough to get the truly good Alphas to start biting.

Reborn toyed with the idea of going straight to the Sawada residence but decided he'd swing by Namimori Junior High instead, to get his first look at his new student. Seeing Tsunayoshi in his home environment without the knowledge of the Vongola crime family hanging over his head would be a great initial observation, so Reborn settled himself into the branches of the tree closest to Tsunayoshi's homeroom.

As most classrooms in schools do, the room was split along dynamics rather than surnames. There were a handful of Alphas in the classroom, put in different sections so that they were never seated directly next to each other; Betas, of which made the majority, filled out the rest of the seats, save the lone seat in the front corner closest to the door, reserved for the class's sole Omega.

Sawada Tsunayoshi really was small and thin. He was scribbling into his notebook as the teacher lectured, seemingly concentrated, but going by his grades, he was likely just doodling and trying not to get caught. He kept his gaze to the front, seemingly wary of meeting any classmate's wandering eyes, an indication he at least understood enough of relationships with other dynamics not to accidentally entice any of the unpresented Alphas in the room. The one Alpha girl wasn't paying him any mind but a couple of the Alpha boys tended to glance in his direction with looks Reborn could understand.

Kids and their hormones. It was going to be a nightmare once they started Presenting. It made Reborn recall Dino's stage of presenting with a light scowl; his already dame student became a hundred times worse, easily falling for just about any unmated Omega's scent and forcing Reborn to beat him into the ground to bring him back to reality.

Tsunayoshi didn't do much else. He'd occasionally tense up, most likely registering the attention of the Alphas in his room, but he'd keep his attention on his notebook. The teacher never said anything directly to him, even when it became obvious Tsunayoshi was not following the lesson at all. That was not surprising – it was common for Omegas to pass from one grade to the next no matter how bad their scores, as it was an unstated fact they would have no future in a career or higher education. Just giving them the basics of an education would be enough, which for Tsunayoshi especially was good, as his marks were just terrible.

Of course, Reborn wouldn't allow his student to lag behind academically either. An Alpha capable of running the Vongola empire until Tsunayoshi produced a blood heir would need a good head on their shoulders, and it was unlikely they'd want an idiot for a Mate, no matter how cute.

Satisfied after a couple hours of observation, Reborn jumped down from the tree and continued on his way to the Sawada residence. He'd learned a bit more about Tsunayoshi, at least enough to confirm preliminary reports: he had no friends, maintained a distant relationship with his classmates, and was prone to distraction. He was clearly not going to top the academic scoreboard nor the social one, but Reborn could still work with that.

The Sawada residence is a modest two-story home with a small, traditional courtyard. It fits perfectly into the neighborhood, neither too much nor too little, and Reborn finds the small garden flourishing in open view appealing. Iemitsu had noted his wife as being a devoted homemaker, and this was apparent in the way she maintained their home even in her husband's absence. She'd make a good role model for Tsunayoshi, and Reborn planned to use Sawada Nana as such a figure. She may be a Beta but she had the loyal homemaker role down pat.

Springing forward to ring the doorbell, Reborn heard the soft footfalls before the door was pulled open. Nana's gaze faced forward first but finding nothing but air, she glanced around until her eyes caught Reborn's tiny figure on her doorstep.

"Oh my, hello there!" Nana squeaked out, surprised but now smiling. There was something very soothing in her presence, but no scent – a characteristic of her dynamic. Betas had no pheromones to emit and the only smell they had was plain body odor. Nana was using a light perfume fragrance but Reborn knew it was artificial.

" _Ciaossu_!" Reborn returned. "It's nice to meet you, I am the home tutor Reborn."

Nana cocked her head to the side, confusion evident. "You're a home tutor? But you're just a baby!" she said, still smiling. She took a small sniff, her eyes tightening at the scent she could just barely glean from her uninvited guest.

Reborn observed this with calculative eyes. It was not an unexpected action, given Tsunayoshi's history; naturally his parents would be more protective. An Alpha, no matter how small, would not be so welcome into their home. Not with Tsunayoshi's history.

"I come highly-recommended, I assure you," Reborn said smoothly. "I was actually sent by your husband, Sawada Iemitsu. He expressed a concern in your son's academic records and believes I can help."

Nana frowned. "Iemitsu sent you?" she echoed, edging more to unsure. Reborn counted this in his favor; if she really were as loyal a wife as Iemitsu had lead him to believe, as long as Reborn could get her to agree, then he'd have free reign when it came to Tsunayoshi.

"If you need, please call him to check," Reborn suggested. "I understand your reservations, especially where your son is concerned."

Nana met his eyes, disbelief trying to bloom on her face. She had frozen on the doorstep, eyes widening at the implication that Iemitsu would tell some Alpha she had never seen before something so private about their son.

A minute passed in stiff, awkward silence. Then, almost mechanically, Nana stepped aside to allow him in. "I'll get us some tea, then call my husband," she decided.

Reborn took his first step into the home, knowing he'd won.

* * *

Reborn sensed as the young Omega drew near, relaxed as he was in his seat as the front door opened and closed, Tsuna's voice ringing out a half-hearted "I'm home!" Nana called back a greeting, also asking her son to step into the kitchen.

Tsuna did as such without fuss, flashing a smile at his mother before his eyes fell on the infant seated at – or more accurately, _on_ – their dining table. Amber eyes widened and Reborn was treated to Tsuna's scent trailing into the room. A light scent, as most Omega youths had, reminiscent of sugar dissolved on the tongue.

It was also a bit stronger than Reborn had expected. An increase of pheromones indicated a higher level of anxiety, and Reborn had expected that much with his arrival, he just thought it would take the Omega boy longer to realize he was a threat. Perhaps Tsunayoshi had better instincts than expected?

"Ciaossu, I am Reborn," the world's number one hitman greeted calmly.

"Your Papa sent you a home tutor," Nana explained, almost painfully cheerful.

She'd accepted her husband's decision but Reborn had overheard her conversation; apparently the fact that he was an Alpha was a point of contention. Although his mind was that of an adult, his body was still that of a very young child – he posed no danger to an Omega. Sawada Nana was a very cautious woman.

Tsunayoshi's eyes widened at the statement. "A-A baby?" he choked out.

Reborn launched from his seat, tiny feet connecting with Tsunayoshi's head and knocking the slight boy over. Reborn had held back, of course – he had no intention of seriously hurting an Omega child, for god's sake – but a sharp intake of breath from Nana indicated she did not appreciate the manhandling of her child.

She kept quiet, though. It was only natural – a baby's body or not, Alpha was Alpha. Now that he'd been given the Iemitsu Seal of Approval, Reborn was considered Alpha of this home. It would be new for the Beta-Omega Sawada household, but Tsunayoshi would have to grow used to being under an Alpha's rule.

"Let's take this upstairs," Reborn ordered imperiously.

Tsunayoshi rose automatically at the tone, turning and doing just that. Reborn may have lost some of the advantages of being an Alpha with his cursed body, but one of the things that had remained was his ability to Demand.

It was an Alpha skill inherent to their dynamic; a certain tone that emitted a pheromone that directly targeted Omega. It was meant as a measure of control over the Omega in a pack, although exploitation and abuse was common; thousands upon thousands of instances of coercion fell into the laps of law enforcement, dealing with an Alpha using this ability to lure and assault Omegas. It was considered rude to use it in public, downright insulting to use it on strangers – but commonplace to use within the home.

This would be his home for however long it would take Tsunayoshi to get Mated. Reborn had no qualms about using whatever he could to get his work done.

Reborn kicked the door shut once they'd entered Tsunayoshi's bedroom. The boy stood stiffly in the center, eyes on Reborn and trembling. Reborn considered this; likely this was the first time an Alpha had used a Demand on him. It was best Reborn get it out of the way now, though, so that Tsunayoshi could grow accustomed to it and would not be taken off-guard and submit to some peon who tried it on him first.

Well, there was a chance Tsunayoshi's assailant had used Demand on him... but the point was also moot. Tsunayoshi still did not remember anything from that night and he would have to grow acclimated to an Alpha's Demand at some point anyway.

Reborn pulled back his will, allowing the Demand to dissipate. He'd have to explain the Vongola and the things now expected of Tsunayoshi as the apparent heir, which was why he'd had them sequestered in the boy's room. Reborn would say it with enough authority so that even a simple-minded boy like Tsunayoshi would understand, and then they could get started on this tutoring business.

At least, that was the plan – before something that felt distinctly like a pulse of Sky Flames brushed across Reborn's skin, and then Tsunayoshi's hand grabbed his face and smashed the back of his head down into the floorboards.

* * *

 **End Chapter 2**

* * *

 **A/N** : Next chapter is from Tsuna's POV! I'm excited. ;)

Please be kind and drop a review.


	3. That's the spirit!

**A/N:** Reborn will understand. Eventually.

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

* * *

" **Six! Seven! Go to Hell or go to Heaven!"**

" _ **Go to Hell!"**_

" **GOOD! THAT'S THE SPIRIT!"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

Reborn's head made contact with the floorboard, just as he'd grasped a thin wrist between his tiny hands and twisted. A sharp squeal of pain and the Omega boy yanked his hand away and recoiled, back hitting the edge of his desk and cradling his wrist to his chest with wide eyes. He cut a sharp picture, all trembling petite frame and wide eyes, as if he hadn't just attempted to brain Reborn against his bedroom floor.

Reborn may have a baby's body but it took a lot more than a child's attempt at assault to actually hurt him. Reborn resumed standing quickly, flaring his pheromones and dark eyes intent on the Omega before him.

This was the first time Reborn encountered an Omega with such aggression. No matter Tsunayoshi's countenance now, he'd just attempted to lash out at an Alpha as soon as he was able to. Was it a result of his assault as a child?

Omega victims of physical or sexual assault were a messy business. Their dynamic's need for physical affection led to complications when dealing with the psychological repercussions assault left on their psyche. Their body craved physical touch; their minds were terrified of it. It was generally decided that the best course of action was to assign an Alpha to mate with them, the underlying reasoning that their Alpha mate would be able to fuflfill their physcial needs, and that the resulitng Bond and (preferably) children would sufficiently heal the psychological wounds. 'Love heals' was the wisftul reasoning; 'fuck them into better health' was the standby.

Omega children that survived assaults were rare. Omegas that retaliated against dominance with violence was _unheard of_.

' _A sensitive boy,'_ Iemitsu had said. _'Be gentle.'_

Reborn wondered if the man's words had a double-meaning. The CEDEF leader could not spend much time at home, seeming to only return to Japan once or twice a year for short periods of time, but there was a chance he may have known about Tsunayoshi's surprisingly violent tendencies. What Reborn initially thought of as a father's advice for an Omega child was starting to turn into a warning to Reborn.

Was just the fact that Reborn was an Alpha setting Tsunayoshi off, or was it the attempt at dominance? Reborn wanted to know.

" _Do not do that again,"_ Reborn ordered the boy coldly, slipping Demand once more into his voice.

Tsunayoshi's reaction was instantaneous: his eyes flashed with what Reborn disbelievingly recognized as flames, and then Tsunayoshi leapt forward and attempted to kick his face in.

Reborn grabbed his student by the ankle, turned and flung him into the wall with a resounding _smack!_ Tsunayoshi fell atop his bed with a grunt of pain, no longer cradling his wrist – Reborn hadn't twisted it, just bruised it something fierce – and was now raising a hand up to stem the blood from his nose, a result of hitting the wall face-first.

Well, at least it was clear Tsunayoshi hated an Alpha's Demand. It was more noteworthy, however, that he had _not heeded_ it.

An Alpha's Demand was not absolute, after all – Omega with strong enough willpower could fight it. Demand was still strong though, enough so that Alphas who had used it on unmated Omegas to coerce them into sexual acts could be prosecuted. Unfortunately, given the nature of society's treatment and expectations of Omega, Alphas that exploited Demand in such a way were forced to mate with their Omega victims, as it was believed Omega who had sex with those they were not Mated with were not looked upon favorably. A better solution was to Mate the attacker and the victim, so that the Omega at least had a chance at a normal life.

However, Reborn was not some common Alpha riff-raff from the street, and Sawada Tsunayoshi had not even hesitated before flinging himself at Reborn in attempted assault.

That was...interesting.

"W-What is that?"

Reborn's expression didn't shift at the unexpected voice. Tsunayoshi had one hand partially cupped over his nose, frightened amber eyes trained on the baby-shaped hitman, and the tremble in his voice was characteristic of his dynamic, especially when faced with an Alpha like Reborn – but when it came after two attempted attacks, Reborn couldn't quite believe the seemingly genuine tremor of fear.

"...an Alpha's Demand," Reborn answered. "You should have already learned about it in school, dame-Tsuna."

Tsunayoshi edged himself back to his feet, warily eyeing Reborn but making no more aggressive moves. He still seemed utterly frightened but Reborn did not let that fool him. "We did," Tsuna replied, wincing a bit. "Learn it in school, I mean. But- I've never felt it before. You're not supposed to use it."

Reborn rose an eyebrow, condescension radiating from his person. "Alphas use it in the home. This is now my home," he pointed out.

The sweetness in Tsuna's scent sharpened, a sign of distress at the words. It was obvious he did not like Reborn's reasoning, and yet just like his mother, he didn't refute it; it was nice to see the boy was not ready to fight the inevitable. Or at least argue it – Reborn was quite certain that if he tried Demand again, Tsuna would ignore his bloody nose and try to rip his face off.

"If you could sit down, dame-Tsuna," Reborn started. "I can explain why I'm here."

Tsuna eyed him distrustfully. "Are you asking me to or are you going to _demand_ I sit?" the Omega boy shot back.

"As amusing as issuing you a Demand would be, I'd prefer to explain it without having to throw you around your room again," Reborn replied dryly.

Tsuna didn't move for a long moment, seemingly testing the waters. Reborn watched him boredly, which was enough; Tsuna gingerly took a seat atop his bed, never breaking eye contact with the hitman. Some part of Reborn was entertained by this; not many people dared to match his eyes, let alone those of the young Omega variety.

Another part of Reborn was irritated. The Sawada residence was now his home, his territory, and he'd just been forced to react to aggression from another person. Instinctively, he wanted to put Tsuna in his place; a young Omega should be taught submission, and the Alpha in Reborn wanted to teach that to him. It was disrespect of the highest order to attempt violence on an Alpha in their own territory.

But Reborn would not.

For one, he had been hired to _mentor_ Tsuna. Whatever his place would be, Reborn was not supposed to dominate the young Omega. He had no intention of dominating or mating with the boy, complications aside. For another, Reborn was not ruled by his instincts – he trusted them, but only to a degree where they actually helped. Tsuna had reacted badly to Reborn's attempts at dominance displays; this was something Reborn needed to know beforehand, and clearly something they would have to work on if Reborn was to complete his assignment satisfactorily. And Reborn wouldn't be pleased with the results unless they were _perfect_.

It was not hard to guess why Tsuna reacted the way he did to Reborn's dominance displays. An assault by an Alpha would have had a dramatic effect on his young psyche, and there had been no Alpha surrogates to help ease the recovery process afterwards. Reborn would have to gauge whether or not Tsuna actually remembered the attack seven years ago, but as it was now, Reborn knew he would not get a straight answer if he asked the boy directly.

Demanding a straight answer was also pointless. Tsuna had already displayed an ability to resist a Demand, and if Reborn wanted to make a stronger Demand, he'd have to actually _Mark_ the boy. Reborn could only wonder how well that would go down.

Reborn pulled out the briefcase he'd stashed away in Tsuna's room prior to the boy's return from school, opening it with professional efficiency. Methodically and under Tsuna's horrified gaze, he snapped the disassembled parts back together.

 _Click, ka-chak._ "My true line of work is assassination," Reborn told the boy flatly. Tsuna tensed on the bed, a coiled spring ready to either flee or fight. Given the extreme of his responses within the last ten minutes, it could very well be the latter.

 _Ka-chak, ka-chak._ "My real job," _Click_. "Is to make you a mafia boss."

Staring down at the cleanly assembled, now fully-functional assault rifle, Tsuna's expression morphed from disbelief to terror. "A-A _what?_ A mafia boss?!"

"I was assigned by the Vongola family's Ninth generation boss to come to Japan and raise you to become a mafia boss," Reborn explained. "The Ninth is getting old and will soon need an heir. That heir will be you."

 _To a degree,_ Reborn added mentally. Given Tsuna's age, however, not to mention his violent reaction to dominance displays, Reborn would not explain what exactly the Ninth had implicitly planned for Tsuna. If his tutoring was effective, Tsuna would figure that out by himself.

Reborn could not accurately gauge Tsuna's reaction to that. If it had been the Omega as presented in the reports Sawada Iemitsu had handed him, he'd have expected the boy to obediently do as told. Reborn was now partially convinced Iemitsu had outright lied in the reports, though, because nowhere had it mentioned Tsuna trying to viciously attack those who tried to dominate him.

Then again, a Beta like Iemitsu had no way of properly gauging that. Tsuna's previous lifestyle in Namimori did not put him in the direct path of Alphas, and his school was ruled by a Disciplinary Committee that did not condone such behavior. It was entirely possible Iemitsu had not known. Hell, Tsuna himself could not have known his own reactions until Reborn. He apparently hadn't known what a Demand felt like.

"I don't understand!" Tsuna cried out, leaning away as Reborn toyed with his rifle. "What do you mean, I'm heir to a mafia?!"

"You will be the Tenth generation boss of the Vongola family," Reborn said, pulling out a few polaroid pictures from his inner suit pocket. "The Ninth's three sons have all passed away. The eldest, Enrico, was shot in a feud."

Reborn shoved the picture in Tsuna's face, and the boy jerked back with a squeak of dismay. "The second son, Matsumo, was drowned." Cue picture number two. It was more gruesome, in that it clearly detailed Matsumo's bloated corpse. They'd managed to fish out his remains after a week, and it had not been a pretty scene to witness.

Tsuna turned decidedly green.

"The favorite son, Federico, was reduced to nothing but bone," Reborn finished. The least gruesome but most ominous of the photographs. The Topazio had been behind Federico's untimely demise, apparently having used some weapon they'd excavated from whatever was left in the ruins of the Estraneo family. The resulting bloodbath from Vongola's retaliation had sent shuddering shockwaves throughout mainland Europe.

"So now you're the only candidate left to be the Tenth," Reborn finished, tucking the pictures back into his pocket.

Tsuna's distressed scent was strong. Reborn made a mental note to work on that; he could probably get cavities from it at this rate. "How does it work out like that? I thought mafia families had to be blood-related!" Tsuna said hastily.

"The first boss of the Vongola retired early and immigrated to Japan," Reborn replied. "He was your great great great grandfather, so you are a part of the original bloodline of the Vongola and thus a legitimate candidate. And as of now, you are the only candidate."

Tsuna stared at him. Then stared at the assault rifle, then back at Reborn.

"That's insane," the Omega replied slowly. "And I refuse."

"Don't worry. I'll make you a fine mafia boss," Reborn steamrolled right over the doubt.

"Is this a prank? Did my dad set this up?" Tsuna continued on, rallying himself together a bit more. Reborn decided to put an end to that with a few shots of his rifle next to Tsuna's head, which had the Omega diving to the side with a short scream.

Scrambling to the corner furthest from Reborn, Tsuna's trembling had returned. "I-Is that gun _real?"_ he demanded tremulously.

"Of course it is," Reborn scoffed. "I'm the World's Greatest Hitman. I use the best."

It was interesting that Tsuna didn't try to attack for the perceived threat. Was the gun too much, or was it really only dominance displays by Alphas that set the boy off? Reborn would have to see how Tsuna interacted with Alphas at his school, at least without a teacher getting in the way.

"I can't be a mafia boss! I'm not even Italian! Shouldn't I be considered _yakuza_ , at the very least?" Tsuna shot out, edging a bit closer to hysteria.

Reborn hoped the expression on his baby-face properly showed condescension. "That's why I'm your home tutor. I will make you into a mafia boss," he repeated boredly.

"I don't want to be a mafia boss!" Tsuna cried.

Reborn checked his wristwatch. "Is dinner soon? I came too late for lunch, and _Maman_ didn't seem willing to provide snacks earlier." Reborn hadn't asked for some while alone with Tsuna's mother because he wasn't entirely convinced Nana wouldn't have tried poisoning it.

"Are you listening to me?" Tsuna continued on. "You- Reborn, right? Reborn, can an Omega even _be_ a mafia boss?"

Reborn matched eyes with Tsuna, voice dismissive. "Clearly, or I wouldn't be here." Tsuna would just have to figure out why an Omega was acceptable by himself.

Tsuna's brows furrowed, his eyes darting to the breastpocket where Reborn had stashed the pictures. Reborn watched the expressions flicker across the Omega's face in mild fascination, reminded once more of what he were sure were Sky flames dancing in the boy's eyes earlier.

It should not be possible. It was clearly stated in the reports that Tsuna had had his Flames sealed since he was five years old, by the Ninth himself. In the extremely rare circumstance that it had broken, Iemitsu would have noted as such to the Ninth or in the reports. No such information existed in Tsuna's file.

But those were definitely Sky flames that grazed Reborn's skin during Tsuna's first assault. It was possible that the assault on Tsuna seven years ago had prompted an extreme reaction from his Flames; perhaps rather than Primo's blood, it was the Sky Flames that had ensured Sawada Tsunayoshi survived being Marked that day.

It would certainly make sense. A traumatic incident could very well have damaged the seal on Tsuna's Flames, at least enough to fuel his defensive actions. This would also explain his reaction to Reborn's attempted dominance; Tsuna had instinctively recognized an act of dominance by an Alpha, comparing it to the assault from seven years ago and prompting a defensive (violent) reaction.

 _So the seal must be damaged,_ Reborn cataloged. The fact that tsuna had Flames strong enough _to_ break through the Ninth's seal and fight off an Alpha's mark was interesting. The Vongola blood ran strong in the child before him.

"Those guys that died," Tsuna began quietly. "The sons of the current boss – what were they? What were their dynamics?"

Reborn pointed the barrel of his rifle back in Tsuna's direction, to the boy's obvious distress. "That doesn't matter," the hitman stated.

"Why?" Tsuna argued. "They weren't Omega, were they? None of them were Omega, and now that they're dead, you guys are just going to have some random kid in Japan take over your mafia business-"

" _Famiglia_ ," Reborn corrected candidly. "Family. The Vongola do have contracts in business though. And I told you, you're blood. Descended from the first boss himself."

"Would mafia men-"

"Mafioso," Reborn corrected.

"-even listen to an Omega?" Tsuna persisted. "You pushed your way in here and then _Demanded_ as soon as you could!"

Reborn made another mental note to work on trust issues. Most Omega didn't react so negatively to an Alpha's Demand, let alone one as innocuous as Reborn's had been. Still, if Reborn didn't explain his reasoning now, Tsuna seemed likely to nurse that grudge for who knows how long. "I used Demand on you because it's something you need to be able to recognize and resist," Reborn said. He was stretching the truth, but he doubted Tsuna would appreciate being told _'you need to get used to being ordered around by an Alpha._ ' "When you're targeted by rival mafia or hitmen, they may use Demand on you. It's important you know what to expect and how to fight it."

"You could have warned me," Tsuna muttered.

"That defeats the point of it, dame-Tsuna," Reborn retorted.

"And why are you calling me that?!" A sheaf of papers smacked Tsuna in the face, falling to the floor. Stark red marks, with scores ranging from 27 to _absolute zero,_ stared up from Tsuna's test papers. Hot red humiliation burned its way across the Omega's face as he bent down to gather the papers and hide them from Reborn's dark eyes.

" _Dame_ is _dame_ ," Reborn reiterated. "But don't worry – I am your home tutor. You will start getting better marks, even if that means you start coughing up blood."

Tsuna's expression said it all. "That is _not_ how tutoring works," fell numbly from the Omega's lips. He came back to himself, which was a bit of a pity because Reborn rather enjoyed how easily Tsuna was playing into his hands. "Wait, you didn't answer my question. Would they really accept an Omega mafia boss?"

Reborn cocked his gun. "You will be the first," he allowed, then _smiled_. "You will just have to convince them to accept it."

Tsuna's resulting expression showed he didn't much care for the idea.

Reborn, for the first time in a long while, thought this was going to be _fun_.

* * *

The home tutor Reborn's arrival into Tsuna's life sparked a dramatic change in his previously lax lifestyle. Their small household was accustomed to a two-person home, both of whom were quiet and gentle in a way that allowed a soft atmosphere. Even with the occasional visits from his father, it came with the ever-present background knowledge that Iemitsu would soon leave.

Even then, there'd never been an Alpha that had staked a claim on their premises. Tsuna vaguely remembered a time a long time ago, when an Alpha had been present in his home – but those memories were vague at best, more fuzzy figures and information related to him via his mother one drowsy morning a couple years ago.

Reborn was an Alpha, albeit a tiny one. Tsuna had grown used to the presence of unpresented Alphas courtesy of school, and while Reborn was reminiscent of his classmates' dynamics, there were stark differences. His classmates were unable to issue a Demand – it was something that developed after Alphas presented – although some of them had tried to affect it a handful of times before, cornering Tsuna during passing periods and trying it on him.

It never worked, as expected. Tsuna had just stared back at his classmates bemusedly, and the Alpha boys were loathe to try anything more forward, given the presence of teachers nearby and the ever-present shadow of the Namichuu's Disciplinary Committee stalking the halls. Alphas stalking and cornering Omegas could be seen as _crowding_ , and the hellish wrath of Hibari Kyoya was the stuff of nightmares.

Now, sitting in his class and away from Reborn's unwanted presence at home, Tsuna could reflect a bit more on the chaotic mess that was now his life. He really should be taking notes, but Math was his least favorite subject and Nezu-sensei explained algebra about as well as a wet dishrag, so there was no point. The only good thing as class 1-B's sole Omega was that calling Tsuna out on his ineptitude could be seen as bullying, which was why his teachers tended to just ignore him instead. Of course, they had more _aggravating_ ways of dealing with Tsuna, but he didn't want to dwell on those because the thing in his chest burned hot and heavy when he did. The last time that had happened, Kurokawa Hana's eyes had bulged nearly out of her head, and nowadays she avoided him altogether.

Reborn was aggravating, but more than that, he was confusing. For one, there's no way he was an actual baby – his body may be but the way he acted and spoke was far too mature. There existed geniuses in the world, of course, but there were too many idiosyncrasies in Reborn's demeanor to qualify him as just a really, really intelligent baby.

For another, he had control over some of an adult Alpha's skills. Demand was one, although after that first day, he hadn't used it at all for the past few days. He still had a presence but that may have been unique to Reborn; Tsuna had never felt anything quite like it before. It was something that had the burn in Tsuna's chest reacting, alerting him to Reborn's presence far before he actually set eyes on the hitman. Was it possible Reborn had been watching him, even before Tsuna had returned home from school that day? He'd felt something different in class that day that had made him tense inexplicably, and his reaction had been noticed by some of the Alphas at that time. It had been written off as an 'Omega thing' but Tsuna rather thought it was a 'Tsuna thing'.

It was the _burn_ in his chest. Tsuna lacked the words to accurately describe it, or even the courage to _actively use_ it. It nestled underneath his skin, settled into the very fibers of his heart, ready at every touch. It soothed him in a way nothing could; the physical touch he so abhorred wasn't needed when he had the fire around his heart. But sometimes...

Sometimes, it did more than just soothe him. Such as when Kurokawa had talked to him with the patronizing tone she used so often when she thought she was making a good point, only it was so much _worse_ because her Alpha pheromone had winded throughout her words, and that had sent the heat in Tsuna's heart radiating up. The way her nose twitched and eyes widened had stilled the brewing flames, and Tsuna had turned and fled before the fire that so itched under his skin could flare its way out. The flame that consoled him never acted benign when confronted by Alphas. Tsuna ended up taking longer, winding ways home to avoid the ramen stall run by a surly Alpha who'd once called out to him, voice mocking and sultry, lest the impulse to let the flames out become reality.

There was something about Alphas, adult ones in particular, that grated on Tsuna. He found the way they talked to him annoying, the way they looked at him indecent; they looked at him without actually acknowledging him, seeing and placing higher importance on 'Omega' rather than 'Tsunayoshi'.

Tsuna didn't remember when that first started to bother him. The condescension wasn't new, couldn't have been something that just started recently – it was just that he'd only recently started to notice it. Tsuna believed it was the burn's fault; it reacted to an Alpha's presence almost violently.

The lessons taught to Japanese schoolchildren covered dynamics, and in his first year at Namichuu, Tsuna finally learned the word for the something that trailed along all the Alpahs he'd interacted with. 'Pheromones' – the presence of which was bundled into every conversation Tsuna had with Alphas.

The burn didn't like Alpha pheromones – every time it felt them, it wanted out. _'Alphas need to dominate,'_ Nezu-sensei had stated in that Dynamics lesson. He'd said it so certainly, as factual as the sky is blue. _'Omegas need to submit.'_

(But the sky wasn't always blue, was it? Sometimes it burned fiery orange as the sun fell into the horizon, one of Tsuna's favorite times.)

' _Omegas need to submit,'_ Nezu-sensei had said.

' _Submit,'_ the Alpha pheromones cajoled, running over Tsuna's skin every time he left the safe haven that had been his home before Reborn had forced his way in. Every time an Alpha spoke to him, it was to order him around, or tell him something with their imperious voices, or coerce him into doing what they wanted him to do for them. Every time a Beta talked to him, it was as if they thought he couldn't understand, or that he was too delicate, or that he needed to be coddled and babied.

' _Submit, because you are weak.'_ A message as clear as day, paraded in Tsuna's face every waking moment.

But the fire in his chest said _'no'_ , stronger and more violent with every passing year. And Tsuna... Tsuna was inclined to agree.

" _An Omega's body is as delicate as a little flower!"_ That's what Tsuna remembered from a television show he used to watch when he was little. An animated brown bear had popped up at the end of the program to provide life advice for the impressionable kids watching. _"Give your Omega family members lots of hugs! Being gentle and nice to your Omega family is like water for them; they depend on you for their health and protection! A delicate little flower can't protect itself – it needs you!"_

Tsuna had known he was an Omega all his life but he'd never really _understood_ it until then. Not until he was seven years old, watching his favorite television character proclaim his inherent weakness and ineptitude.

"Oi, Sawada!"

Tsuna perked up, brought back to reality by his classmate's call. It seemed class had ended, leaving them for their 45-minute lunch break. His classmates were already moving about, rearranging desks for their favored lunchtime positions, but it looked like Kenkawa had been caught at the door.

"Sawada, Mochida-senpai is looking for you," a girl from the neighboring classroom said, poking her head in after Kenkawa had gotten his attention. "He said to meet him in Science Lab 3."

Mochida was an upperclassman, an Alpha and captain of the Kendo club. Tsuna knew of him but he didn't remember ever directly interacting with the popular senior. It was well-known the Alpha was harboring a crush on Sasagawa Kyoko – she was the school sweetheart, a pretty little Beta with a glittering smile and genuinely kind demeanor. If Mochida was going to be calling anyone out from class 1-B, it should be her.

"Did he say why?" Tsuna asked unsurely. He really would rather not talk to Mochida, especially alone. If his experience with Reborn was any indication, he apparently didn't react well to any Alpha that tried to _Alpha_ him.

Experimentally, Tsuna flared his pheromones a bit, pretending not to notice the reaction. Given that none of his classmates had presented, it was all very subdued: the Betas didn't notice anything, too undeveloped and his sweet scent otherwise smothered by the smell of their lunches, but a few of the Alphas tensed and turned their attention to the interaction.

Kurokawa Hana had been partially listening in, but on seeing that Tsuna was directly related, resolutely turned her attention back to her lunch with conspicuous avoidance lining her shoulders. Iwasaki Gorou was looking at Tsuna, head cocked and dropping food into his lap when the distraction proved too much. Yamamoto Takeshi had turned to look, sushi bentou sitting forgotten in front of him.

Alphas reacted to _everything_ he did. Tsuna had been forced to sit out during P.E. because he was considered too delicate for contact sports, and the last time he'd run the track, Iwasaki and Murota had tailed him in a daze. Tsuna rather thought _they_ should be the ones sitting out, if just a bit of sweat made them addle-brained.

"He didn't say why," the girl replied with a shrug.

"Why would he want to talk to Sawada?" Iwasaki interjected. Tsuna sensed the possessiveness in his tone and choked down the flame that wanted to burst out at it. It was expected that the Alphas in his class wouldn't like him – their class's Omega – getting called out alone by another Alpha. It trespassed on them in some capacity, although the teachers had repeatedly told them that there was no Alpha claim on the school. Perhaps that would be easier to believe if _Hibari Kyouya_ wasn't among the student body.

"I don't know, I'm just the messenger!" the girl huffed. "Consider the message delivered!"

She turned and stormed off without so much as a by-your-leave. Iwasaki rolled his eyes, mollified somewhat by the response. "Are all Betas such huffy bitches?" he groused lightly.

"Not as much of a bitch as you're being," Kurokawa snarked, tone bland. She wouldn't have intervened had the boy not insulted Betas, which in turned implied insult on Kyoko, Kurokawa's best friend. Given that Kurokawa was about ten times smarter and a hundred times scarier than him, Iwasaki wisely didn't retort.

Tsuna idled at his desk for a moment. On one hand, it would be perfectly acceptable to ignore Mochida's summons. On the other hand, he did want to know what the older boy wanted from him. Calling Tsuna out of the blue was uncharacteristic, especially since he wasn't even friends with Kyoko.

A good mafia boss wouldn't ignore a challenge.

Tsuna let his head drop down to his desk. _I don't want to be a mafia boss,_ he reminded himself. Reborn was _scary_ , and the Alphas in Namimori were frightening enough – the Alphas of the criminal underbelly would defy description.

" _You will be the first. You will just have to convince them to accept it."_

Reborn had such an annoying way of talking. He insulted Tsuna, always calling him "no good," and he even smacked him around. ( _What kind of behaviour is that for an Alpha?!_ Tsuna had wondered.) The strange thing was, after that first day, Reborn never actually talked _down_ to Tsuna. Sure, Reborn would ignore his multiple protestations, but he never treated Tsuna like a particularly dim toddler. _Maybe because he looks like a baby, so he knows what it feels like?_ Tsuna mused. If that were the case, Tsuna would recommend turning all Alphas into terrifying infants too.

Reborn was annoying in that way. He was also plainly terrifying, waving around his multitudes of guns, and one time even the lizard on his hat had come down and transformed into a gun, and Tsuna had been forced to review his homework with the barrel of a green pistol aimed at the back of his head.

But Reborn said things as if they were absolute.

" _You will just have to convince them to accept it."_

Reborn was here to tutor Tsuna into a mafia boss, and he wasn't going to let a thing like Tsuna being an Omega get in the way of that goal.

It was...refreshing.

"I'm not gonna be a mafia boss," Tsuna re-iterated to himself, muttering into the top of his desk. Afer a moment, he heaved a sigh and stood, making his way to the door.

"You're going to see Mochida-senpai?" came Yamamoto's bemused voice.

Tsuna shrugged, not bothering to turn around as he headed out. "He's still our upperclassman," he replied. "Good underclassmen respect their senpai." Or so it had been explained to him by his mother when he was eight, after she'd caught him trying to set fire to Koharu-senpai's dress.

The science labs were two floors up, where all the senior homerooms were. Tsuna had never been there alone, as his class tended to flank him when they had to change classrooms. There were only eight Omega total in the whole student body of Namichuu, three in Tsuna's year, three more in the year above, and two in the year above that. Tsuna didn't personally know the other Omegas, usually sequestered away in his class or doodling in his notebook, and Omegas were always put in separate classes whenever possible.

It went unsaid that the teachers didn't want to deal with the possibility of their Omega students getting _too close_ to each other. Omegas that weren't family hardly made friendships; it was widely believed that Omegas only needed the companionship of their Mate and family, and it was an idea often reinforced throughout their schooling. Friendships with Betas were acceptable, but if an Omega befriended another Omega, they might want to be more than _just friends_ with that Omega and that was unacceptable.

Tsuna entered the third floor, eyes flicking this way and that. He registered the attention he garnered, the fire in the cavity of his chest prickling at his heart. The last time it had done that was the day Reborn arrived.

Tsuna entered Science Lab 3, stepping into an otherwise deserted room save for Mochida standing slouched by the lab counter closest to the door, one hand grasping a sheet of paper. The older male looked up at his entrance, a small smile pulling up his lips a moment later.

"You came, Sawada," Mochida greeted, seemingly puffing up in confidence.

Tsuna nodded in greeting. "Was there something you needed, Mochida-senpai?" he asked politely, eyes locked somewhere on the vicinity of Mochida's chin.

" _It's rude to stare at their eyes, Sawada,"_ his fifth grade teacher had once lectured him. _"A proper Omega doesn't challenge an Alpha like that!"_

Tsuna didn't really understand that rule, and he'd broken it quite a few times. The first time had been with Kurokawa, and now the girl wouldn't go near him unless forced. He'd broken it when he first interacted with Reborn, too, but that was mostly because Tsuna was wary of being attacked by a hitman.

Tsuna didn't try to challenge it at school when he could help it. His Alpha classmates rarely ever talked to him directly, so it hadn't been an issue for the most part. Mochida was an upperclassman too, so Tsuna could do as he'd been vehemently taught and not directly challenge him, even if the fire in his chest urged him to.

Mochida raised the paper in his hand as if to give evidence of something. "Iwasaki slipped this into my shoe locker. It's a letter of challenge," he said.

Tsuna's eyes went to the letter, brow furrowing. If _Iwasaki_ sent it, then why was _Tsuna_ here?

His confusion must have been obvious, as the smile on Mochida's face turned patronizing. "It's a letter of challenge for you," he said slowly.

Tsuna gaped. "Wh-What?!" he stuttered out in horror.

A letter of challenge _for Tsuna?_ From _Iwasaki?_ _To Mochida?_

Where the _fuck_ did Iwasaki Gorou get the _nerve?_

"I was surprised too," Mochida commiserated, expression understanding but not understanding at all. "I mean, I wasn't even aiming for you – no offense, Sawada – but, I mean, a challenge is a challenge. You know how it is with us Alphas, right?"

Tsuna stared at the senior. "What do you mean, 'a challenge is a challenge'?" he echoed weakly.

Mochida frowned, apparently irritated (but not surprised) by Tsuna not understanding. _'Typical Omega,'_ was clearly broadcasting from his face. "The Alpha of _your_ class challenged _me_ , another Alpha," he explained, affecting the tone people usually reserved for explaining topics to dim-witted children. "I have to accept the challenge, obviously."

"The challenge _for me,"_ Tsuna repeated for clarification.

Mochida nodded with a roll of his eyes.

"What does that even _mean?"_ Tsuna questioned, disturbed. "And Iwasaki isn't _the Alpha_ of our class. Kurokawa is smarter, and Yamamoto is stronger." At least, Tsuna thought Yamamoto was stronger; he was the star of the baseball team, and Iwasaki wasn't even a first-string in the table tennis club.

"He challenged me to a match," Mochida said. "After our last class today, we'll meet in the kendo clubroom. You need to be there. That's why I called you out right now – that little shit Iwasaki didn't even tell you he was interested in you, right? I figured he wouldn't tell you to come."

Tsuna would have marveled at the fact that Mochida apparently thought it smart to waste their lunch hour for this pointless venture, but it was buried somewhere under all the fire spreading out from his chest.

"I don't see why I have to be there," Tsuna said. "Or why there has to be a match at all. Mochida-senpai, _you just said_ you aren't interested in me." _Thank God._ "And for what it's worth, I don't think Iwasaki is either."

If anything, this had to be a prank. If Iwasaki had had any designs on him, surely Tsuna would have noticed it before. The burn in his chest seemed rather attuned to that, if only so that he could smother it before fledgling interest turned into something full-blown.

Mochida shook his head. "A match is a match, Sawada," he refuted. "And since it's a challenge for you, you're the prize."

The world froze instantly. Tsuna's eyes did not widen, his scent did not change, his heart continued to beat in its steady rhythm – but the world fell away. Mochida continued speaking but Tsuna could not understand the words; he had lost the ability to listen. Understanding came slowly, came painfully, like dragging a wounded appendage through molasses. It felt familiar, like a bandage wrapped around his throat, something unseen sending spikes of pain into his body.

" _No_."

Mochida stopped talking, taken aback. Tsuna lifted his gaze from the older male's chin to his eyes.

"I'm sorry, senpai," He wasn't. "But I won't. I'm not a prize."

The very word felt like poison on his tongue. To be thought of as some token to be won was one thing; to be told so to his face was the greatest affront. It meant Mochida hadn't even felt the need to hide such a thought from him.

"You can't win people like prizes," Tsuna continued on, gentler this time. "That's not right, senpai."

Tsuna should leave it at that. He wouldn't go to the supposed match, that was that; whether Mochida and Iwasaki decided to have their match anyway meant nothing. Tsuna isn't some prize to be won, and if they wanted to be idiots, they didn't need to involve him.

Tsuna turned to leave, but was stopped when Mochida grabbed him by the arm harshly, pulling him back around. Tsuna grit his teeth at the touch, fire racing through his veins.

 _He's touching me,_ Tsuna thought. His scent sharpened, and Tsuna gritted his teeth trying to hold it at bay, but the thought echoed in his head over and over. _He's touching me, he's tOuChing Me, He'S TouCHiNg ME-_

"Sawada," Mochida bit out, eyes narrowed and nostrils flaring. His pheromones laced the words and stained the air, brushing over Tsuna's skin harshly. Mochida smelled of steel and rice straw, subdued somewhat by his undeveloped glands but from this close, Tsuna could discern the spike in intensity.

" _You're coming,"_ Mochida repeated, fierce and so much more threatening. He was too young to make it a Demand, but the intention was clear regardless. "I'm not interested in you like that, but you're gonna come anyway. Just be a good little Omega and accept it."

"Accept it?" Tsuna echoed numbly. "Accept being some toy to win?"

Mochida scowled, shaking him a bit. "Don't talk back," the older male warned him sternly.

 _Come to the match, accept being the prize, don't talk back._ The orders may not have an Alpha's Demand in them, but that was only because Mochida couldn't physically do that yet. But if he could, if at this very moment he had the same ability as Reborn, _Mochida would have Demanded it of Tsuna._

He would Demand Tsuna come to the match. Demand that he accept being a prize. Demand that he just shut up.

An Alpha demands. An Omega submits.

 _Mochida was still touching him._

The fire raged, but it did more than just urge Tsuna into action, as it had done when confronted with Reborn. Bcause the fire knew that Reborn had no intention of Dominating Tsuna so intimately, the same way it knew that if it weren't for their pre-presentation bodies, _Mochida would have._

The fire raged, and so – for the first time in a long time – Tsuna let it go.

It danced under his skin, and Mochida's eyes widened as Tsuna's visage abruptly –shifted. But Tsuna had no time to acknowledge Mochida's change in expression, because he suddenly knew exactly what he had to do. And he did just that.

Tsuna grabbed Mochida's arm with his free one, and _twisted_. Mochida released him with a yelp, louder even than Tsuna's squeal when Reborn had twisted his wrist earlier in the week. Tsuna pushed forward with Mochida's jerking away, gaining momentum and knocking the older boy off-balance, bringing Mochida crashing to the floor.

Tsuna followed him down, only he had both hands clasped around the Alpha's throat. The fire raged in his veins, positioning his body so that his knees kept Mochida's arms pinned to the ground, and he felt every attempted (and subsequently failed) jerk to knock him off-balance.

An Alpha's strength outstripped that of a Beta, let alone an Omega. Even a young Alpha like Mochida had this inherited strength, which was only reinforced by his training in the kendo club. He freed one hand, grabbing Tsuna by the front of his shirt and pulling the younger boy off him with physical strength alone.

Tsuna fell back, clinging to Mochida's hold rather than fighting it, twisting slightly so that his right leg came up. Before Mochida could figure out what he was doing, Tsuna brought his leg sweeping down, the heel of his slipper-clad foot meeting Mochida's nose with a sickening crack.

" _You fuck-!"_ Mochida choked out, words muffled and pained.

Tsuna twisted his body, brinigng Mochida's arm with him in the movement, eliciting a scream of pain before relasing the older boy's appendage. Tsuna rolled off the older male's form, springing up to his feet. Mochida was not as quick, hampered by both surprise and injuries. Tsuna brought his leg back, kicking forward and sending the older boy sprawling.

"I'm sorry, Mochida-senpai," Tsuna started, words cold but heat flaring so hotly under his skin, he wondered if he was imagining the flames that danced across his skin in open view. "But I am not going."

Tsuna pulled the older boy up by the lapels, then brought their foreheads together with a crash. Mochida's eyes bulged before sliding closed; Tsuna released him and he slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Tsuna was brought back to himself in pieces. His forehead stung from the impact, and he registered that first. It was quiet in the room, now void of one conscious occupant, and Tsuna took the moment of silence to look at his hands.

What had he done?

 _...He's not touching me anymore,_ Tsuna thought distantly.

 _An Omega submits._

Standing above an Alpha, the Omega Tsuna was clearly...not submitting.

Because Tsuna wasn't a delicate little flower, and he'd set this _entire fucking world ablaze to prove it._

* * *

 **End Chapter 2**

* * *

 **A/N** : Gokudera is coming soon~ Did you enjoy the hint of Yamamoto and Hibari in this chapter? They're gonna be _exciting_.

 _Notes on Tsuna:_

- **Concerning the assault when he was little** : It was an important moment, one that had very real and significant impact on Tsuna – but the trauma doesn't define him. He's more than just that one horrible moment. It's still repressed, as evident in this chapter, but it clearly affects him, even subconsciously. Just don't expect it to be some be-all, end-all for Tsuna. He is _so much more_ than one traumatic moment.

- **Concerning Tsuna's View on Dynamics** : There's a certain...hypocrisy to Tsuna's thinking, in how he thinks about Alphas and Omegas. He's quite (rightfully) irritated by how society treats Omega, but sometimes he'll use those same societal expectations and thrust them on Alphas. I think this can be very true to life: our own thoughts sometimes warring or coinciding with society's as a whole. Some of this will serve as points of conflict as Tsuna engages more with the world, but it's needed for personal growth, and I hope to show that.

 **Notes on Reborn:**

-He's used to life as an Alpha, and it shows. Please give him time, he comes around...eventually.

 **Notes on Sawada Iemitsu:**

-I am going to leave you all in a perpetual state of 'does-or-doesn't-he-know' concerning Tsuna until the story answers it. LOL

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. Reviews are appreciated. :)


	4. The killing jar

**A/N:** So I know I listed the pairing as 10th Gen Guardians/27 and All/27, but I feel I should clarify:

It's more like Everyone/Everyone? But mostly hints, 'cause a lot of these guys are underage, and any actual concrete romance would be like really far down the plotline. I mean, there will be a lot of crushes and obvious mooning over so-and-so (probably mooning over Tsuna 'cause he's awesome and all), but not full-on ABO smut for a long while.

And while it is still very much All/27, this fic also includes strong elements of 8059 (YamamotoGokudera), 3387 (RyoheiHana), 10051 (ByakuranIrie), XanxusSqualo, others to come. But, you know, everyone's still mooning after Tsuna too.

Endgame 'pairing' for Tsuna? ;) You will just have to wait for it.

 **Additional tags** : Polyamory, and intersex characters.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyou Hitman Reborn.

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

" **You've got a little boy.**

 **He shows you his butterfly collection plus the killing jar."**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

Maintaining order was imperative in any school, especially those that mixed dynamics as Namimori Junior High did. For generations, the school had been mostly successful at keeping a peaceful, stable atmosphere; there had been handfuls of incidents in every generation but nothing that a few apologies from Alpha students and/or their parents couldn't soothe over.

Omega had been introduced into the school in the mid-1990s, the former school that specialized in their dynamic being absorbed into Namimori Junior High after having fallen on hard financial times during the recession. It was not as drastic a change in environment as it would have been had their students been old enough to present, but it was enough to make those first few years very rocky.

Of course, that was until Hibari Sasako came of age to enter junior high and subsequently claim the reins of what had initially been a small Disciplinary Committee. After she'd convinced – exclusively through vicious attacks – the more delinquent members of the student body to reform, the numbers of the Committee swelled and established a seat of power that would come to be handed down from one generation of Hibari to the next.

With her hold on Namimori Junior High – _Namichuu_ – secure, violence between students (excluding the DC) went down considerably. This had much to do with the fact that Alphas butting heads out of pride or territorial claim were either absorbed into the DC and fell under Hibari's hand, or they simply learned the hard way and ended up in the hospital.

Naturally, the lack of overbearing Alphas clamoring for power allowed the school atmosphere to settle into something resembling peace. Betas enjoyed a violence-free zone and Omegas only had to contend with condescension rather than outright dominance displays.

It was as close to peaceful as a mixed-dynamic school could get, only broken by the occasional scream of pain from a wayward Alpha who thought to challenge Hibari's seat of power.

Notably, the power came from Hibari herself. So when she graduated into Namimori Senior High, she'd left behind the structure of the Committee but without her continued presence, the school slowly slid back into its old ways. There was a notable surge in violence and dominance displays that continued to worsen in the years since her graduation from their ranks.

Until the next generation of Hibari.

Hibari Kyouya took after his mother in many ways: immense, unyielding strength; a core of steel; a high-pedigree Alpha with a brilliant mind; a god-like capacity for violence. What differed was that Hibari Kyouya lacked the learned trait for restraint, something that his mother had not been able to teach him as her life had been cut so short. So Hibari had learned all the strengths of his mother but none of her limits – which had made his entrance and takeover of Namimori Junior High and subsequently _Namimori itself_ a bloodbath.

One of the most basic tenants of Hibari's rule over the school was to not crowd. The definition of 'crowd' changed by the day; Hibari could be fine stalking the halls through swarms of students one day but may enact violence on a couple of Alpha arguing in open view the next day. It was the Alpha in him, his teachers had reasoned – if he found Alphas showcasing any kind of dominance display, he'd put them down without mercy.

By government-issued decree, all schools within Japan were not allowed to be claimed as territory by an Alpha. In Namimori's reality, Hibari Kyouya was the undisputed ruler. And so, when scuffles arose within Hibari's domain, they were inevitably brought to his attention.

Such as when third year Mochida Kensuke was found beaten and unconscious in the school science lab.

In the direct aftermath of a fight, there would be scents left behind giving some clue as to who was behind it. If the participants were before-presentation youths, the scents dwindled that much quicker; when the scene had been left too long, the scents were virtually undetectable.

Thus Kusakabe Tetsuya only had a lab filled with the scent of Mochida's defeat, and a crumpled challenge letter carelessly tossed into the trash bin.

"The letter is supposedly from Iwasaki Gorou, first year Alpha," Kusakabe reported, eyes on the Committee Chairman's desk, head slightly bowed to denote respect. His station as a Beta meant eye contact couldn't be seen as a direct challenge, but through long years of exposure to Hibari, Kusakabe knew it was better to be safe than sorry. "However, Iwasaki has an alibi; he had been in his homeroom throughout lunch and in class with witnesses for the rest of the school day."

Kusakabe placed a sealed plastic bag onto Hibari's desk, wherein contained the wrinkled form of the challenge letter. "Cross-analyzation shows this to be Iwasaki's handwriting but he insists he never wrote it. We think it may be a professional forgery," the tall senior said.

Hibari's eyes scanned the document, no expression on his face.

"There is one other party," Kusakabe continued, voice tinged with the slightest hint of doubt. "A classmate of Iwasaki's, Sawada Tsunayoshi. He's an Omega, and the challenge letter was over him."

Kusakabe paused, ruminating briefly before he continued. "During lunch, he was summoned by Mochida to Science Lab 3. Sawada was apprehended for questioning-" By Kusakabe himself, because even though the Committee members feared Hibari's wrath, Kusakabe wasn't going to leave them alone with a possibly-distressed Omega. "-and he admitted to seeing Mochida at the location. He said they talked about the challenge, of which Sawada was sure was a prank, and then Sawada returned to his homeroom for the rest of the lunch period. He reported Mochida was fine and conscious when he left."

Hibari stilled briefly. "Sawada Tsunayoshi?" he echoed faintly, tone thoughtful.

Kusakabe nodded. "He seemed surprised and scared by what happened to Mochida, but not to a degree where it looks like he may have known who the perpetrator is and was threatened to keep quiet." Sawada's scent had held that sharp sweetness that Kusakabe had learned to associate with an Omega in distress after the Beta had told the boy what had happened. However, Sawada didn't seem particularly terrified, as he would have been had whoever had attacked Mochida threatened Sawada to keep quiet.

"Mochida regained consciousness hours ago, but said he never saw who his attacker was," Kusakabe reported. Kusakabe didn't believe the senior but the kendo club captain had an inflated sense of ego, which had doubtlessly been hit hard by his defeat. There was no point in persisting in questioning an Alpha with a wounded sense of pride.

"Cease all investigation."

Kusakabe stilled, breath caught in his lungs.

Hibari pulled the sealed plastic bag closer, dark eyes flicking over the words once more. Kusakabe didn't smell any change in scent but he felt the spike in pressure; this wasn't pheromones, he knew – this was _killing intent_. The corners of Hibari's lips turned up, bloodlust radiating in his eyes.

"I will find them," Hibari stated smoothly. "And _bite them to death."_

* * *

The heat wrapped around his heart glowed strongly for a moment before settling, putting an abrupt stutter in Tsuna's steps. Given that he was just outside the front door to his home, he could only guess why his instincts had reacted – most likely to the looming Alpha presence Tsuna felt behind the door.

Tsuna hesitated only briefly, before rallying himself back together and pushing open the door. "I'm home!" he called out into the house, shutting the door softly behind him.

"Welcome home," Nana called back, emerging from the kitchen with a smile. Reborn popped out from around the corner, Leon wrapped around his arm and dark, beady eyes trained on Tsuna. The hitman's expression was flat as usual, although Tsuna felt he was beginning to learn the minor differences in expression, even without Reborn saying anything.

For example, right now he was getting the impression of cautious irritation.

"Dame-Tsuna," Reborn greeted blandly. "How was school?"

The voice was piping and casual, but Tsuna somehow instinctively recognized the underlying message: _I know what you did. Explain yourself._

Tsuna knew what he did too, and hopefully, this was something only he and Reborn were privy too. Tsuna thought he'd played out Kusakabe pretty well; the older Beta had seemingly bought Tsuna's words, his impression of Omega working in Tsuna's favor for once.

Who would ever think a fragile Omega like Tsuna capable of beating down an esteemed Alpha like Mochida? It was impossible. It was so much easier to believe that Tsuna had just luckily gotten away before Mochida's assault, and the Disciplinary Committee had bought his words hook, line, and sinker. The only person who could contradict such a thought was Mochida himself, but considering Tsuna had returned home without incident, the senior had likely kept quiet about him.

 _Alpha pride,_ Tsuna recognized. It'd be the death of them.

"I didn't understand Nezu-sensei's lecture at all," Tsuna blithely admitted, to Nana's well-intentioned giggling. "Oh, and I met with Mochida-senpai."

Reborn stared at him. Nana tilted her head, expression open and curious. "Mochida-senpai?" she echoed.

Tsuna nodded. "He's captain of the kendo club. Someone was playing a prank on him, though, and he wanted to talk to me about it because he thought it was me," Tsuna explained, eyes never leaving Reborn.

Nana raised a hand to her mouth, surprised. "Oh my, that's horrible! What happened?"

Tsuna shrugged. "I don't know who was behind the prank but it wasn't me," he replied. "Mochida-senpai just needed some convincing."

Leon crawled into Reborn's hand, contorting into the shape of the green pistol Tsuna was starting to become very familiar with. Reborn's eyes never left Tsuna, even as Nana made comments about how silly kids could be, returning to the kitchen intent on preparing snacks and leaving the two alone in the living room.

"Did you successfully _convince_ Mochida?" Reborn asked casually, noticeably clicking the safety off his gun.

Tsuna stared back at him, fire in his eyes. "I tried," he replied after a moment.

Then, to Tsuna's confusion, Reborn's lips quirked up in a smile. "Not bad, Dame-Tsuna," he allowed softly. The illusion of goodwill was abruptly ruined when the baby hitman shot two warning shots next to Tsuna's head. "But you still have lots more to work on."

* * *

"We have a new transfer student who was studying overseas in Italy," Class 2-B's homeroom teacher introduced bright and early the next morning. "Gokudera Hayato."

Silver hair framed a delicately-sloped face, jade green eyes currently narrowed in a fiery glare directed at the class at large. A scowl marred the lips of an otherwise very attractive face, and the air seemed to buzz around the lithe figure standing at the front of class.

Tsuna wondered what it was about the other boy, because that definitely was _not_ pheromones in the air. Gokudera Hayato was a Beta.

"Hey, isn't he really hot?" Kobayakawa whispered to her neighbor, sending a few of the nearby girls tittering. Murota heard and snorted, skeptical eyes on the transfer student; as one of the bigger Alpha boys in the room, he wasn't impressed by the chain-wearing Beta at the front.

Gokudera didn't even deign to acknowledge the commentary. He completely ignored the teacher's suggestion to introduce himself, moving forward – glaring eyes fastened on Tsuna.

Tsuna watched him approach warily. The burn in his heart did not react but there was a twinge that alerted Tsuna to expect something hostile from the approaching male. Sure enough, Gokudera kicked at his desk, the edge smacking into Tsuna's midsection with an _oomph!_ Gokudera ignored the resulting whispers and stern reprimand from Matsumoto-sensei.

"Oi, transfer student," Murota snapped out. "What the hell's your problem?"

Gokudera didn't reply, taking his assigned seat in the second to last row, still glowering in Tsuna's direction. Tsuna corrected his desk position, absently rubbing his midsection, cringing down to avoid Gokudera's gaze.

In Matsumoto-sensei's subsequent lecture, Tsuna never noticed the way Yamamoto's eyes lingered on him.

Gokudera vanished during third period and some of the more academically-inclined students marveled at his gall; it took guts to skip class on his first day at a new school. Tsuna was just relieved the guy wasn't there to glare daggers into his back for another two periods, and almost felt relaxed when lunch rolled around.

Tsuna had just opened his bento lunchbox when Iwasaki crowded into his space, frowning worriedly. "Hey, Sawada," he started, pulling up a chair from a nearby desk to take a seat adjacent. "You heard about what happened to Mochida-senpai, right?"

The whole school had heard what had happened to Mochida. Current reigning theory was that Mochida had pissed off some third year thugs that weren't under Hibari's direct command, and they'd caught him alone and pummeled him. Mochida appeared to be running with that, although he'd exaggerated the number to five.

Tsuna nodded at Iwasaki, snapping open his disposable chopsticks. "Yes. I was lucky I left when I did, or I might have got caught too," he replied quietly. He flared his pheromones lightly, an appropriate reaction to distressing news.

Iwasaki nodded, smiling in relief. He patted Tsuna's arm, not noticing the way the boy tensed and the grip on his chopsticks threatened to break them. "Yeah, thank god you weren't caught up in that. An Omega has no business getting tied up in Alpha fights," he agreed.

Tsuna stared at him, amber eyes locked on the boy's jaw. "Yeah," Tsuna murmured. _Because they're stupid,_ he thought privately.

"Anyway, I wanted to know if you and Mochida-senpai talked about, um, why he was there?" Iwasaki hedged. "The Disciplinary Committee talked to me yesterday, accused me of, uh, writing a challenge letter to Mochida-senpai..."

Finally, the crux of the matter. "Oh, that," Tsuna started. "Well, I mean, it was obviously a prank – I know you don't think like that, Iwasaki-kun."

Iwasaki's eyebrow raised at the weird phrasing. "Um, yeah... I mean, it's nothing personal, Sawada – but I just don't feel that way about you," he said, voice affecting a gentle tone, as if to let Tsuna down kindly.

"I know," Tsuna replied shortly. He just wanted to eat lunch. This was the second day in a row an Alpha was wasting his lunch hour because of an over-inflated sense of pride.

"Oh, well, um," Iwasaki stuttered. "Good."

Tsuna nodded.

Iwasaki stood, putting the borrowed chair back and shuffling away, vague confusion on his face as he left the classroom. Some of their loitering classmates watched him go, amused despite themselves, although Kurokawa eyed Iwasaki's retreating visage with something close to understanding on her face.

Tsuna dug into his lunch, glad to be done with the whole mess of Mochida's arrogance.

* * *

Arrogance was an Alpha trait.

Tsuna already knew that, but some part of him hadn't fully understood that until after school that day. He'd been tasked with mopping the stairwell, and was in the process of putting the mop away when Murota's unconscious body was thrown into the wall next to the cleaning supply closet, falling to the floor with a dull thud.

Tsuna turned, surprise widening his amber eyes as he took in the sight of Gokudera Hayato scowling at him, clearly in a fighting stance.

"You sent your Alpha bitch after me?" the silver-haired teen growled. "Because you're too weak to fight me yourself?"

Tsuna took in the accusation with numbing shock. "M-My _what?"_ he asked faintly.

The heat in Tsuna's heart crooned at the sight of Gokudera, who was lighting up a cigarette. "If a weak prick like you becomes the Vongola Tenth, the Family is doomed," Gokudera hissed. "There's no way I'll allow that to happen."

Tsuna _knew_ it. He knew it was all Reborn's fault – an Italian transfer student with anger issues? That had Reborn written all over it. As if to cement this fact, a small, black sihlouette jumped down from a second story window and to the ground, revealing Reborn adorned in his usual suit, Leon-pistol in hand as he gazed between the two teens.

" _Ciaossu_ ," Reborn greeted. "You're earlier than I expected, Gokudera Hayato."

" _Of course you know him!"_ Tsuna cried out.

Reborn utterly ignored him. "Murota isn't part of the Family, by the way. He's just an idiot," he told the Beta boy.

Gokudera straightened up at Reborn's attention, green eyes flicking away from Tsuna to Murota. "So he's just a civilian? He was saying I heard to learn my place, and not threaten Sawada or whatever," Gokudera said around his cig. "He was fucking annoying."

Reborn nodded. "Do you hear that, Tsuna? Gokudera beat up an annoying Alpha for you," the baby hitman observed aloud.

"What?!"

"I didn't do it for him!"

Reborn was smiling; Tsuna wasn't fooled. "What are you up to, Reborn?" Tsuna demanded, eyes meeting beady black.

Amusement colored Reborn's next words.

"Gokudera Hayato is here to kill you," Reborn informed the Omega teen. "If you die, he becomes candidate 10th boss."

Tsuna gaped at the baby. "But- you said it was by blo-"

His intuition twinged, Tsuna's body moving of its own accord, pelting away just as a stick of dynamite exploded where he'd just been standing. Tsuna turned wide eyes to where Gokudera stood, at least ten lit cigarettes between his teeth and more than a dozen sticks of dynamite in his hands.

" _Dynamite?_ You have _dynamite?!"_ Tsuna squeaked out, just as Gokudera lit all the bombs at once via cigarettes, throwing them with frightening accuracy in Tsuna's direction. The first floor courtyard exploded in a hail of dirt and concrete debris.

"It's said that Gokudera Hayato conceals dynamite all over his body," Reborn's voice piped up, figure hidden by the smoke. "His other name is Smokin' Bomb Hayato."

 _"How did he get past Japanese Customs?!"_ Tsuna shrieked.

"Dame-Tsuna, if you don't focus, you'll die," came Reborn's reply.

A handful of dynamite sliced through the air, aimed for Tsuna's face. Tsuna screamed, body moving instantly to smack and kick the bombs out of the way, sending them high into the air to explode without casualty.

"Fucking hold still!" Gokudera yelled at him ferociously, lithe figure discernible through the settling dust and smoke. Tsuna was horrified to see that his dynamite number had increased from a couple handfuls to over three dozen.

Tsuna's fire didn't rage against his ribcage, as it had done with Reborn and Mochida. It flared from under his skin but to a more subdued degree, aiding Tsuna in moving quicker out of the path of explosions. But why was it not lashing out as vindictively as it had before?

"Dame-Tsuna, you have to fight back," Reborn's voice cut through. "Defeat him, just as you did Mochida."

Tsuna could. He knew he could, had recognized Gokudera's fighting pattern and located a handful of ways to attack the other boy. The silver-haired teen favored offense over defense, lacked any true shield and sacrificed protection of his body in favor of sharpening his attack.

Tsuna was quick. He could slip forward, bit by bit, dodging Gokudera's array of dynamite to land a hit. He could aim for those green eyes – it would be hard to aim when he couldn't see. He could jerk and twist Gokudera's arm at an angle, so quick that the momentum itself fractured it. He could aim a sharp kick at the rib, breaking a couple bones and incapacitating Gokudera from further movement.

Tsuna could wrap his fingers around that slender, pale throat and _squeeze_.

The very idea made him nauseous.

Tsuna recoiled, and a stick of dynamite slipped into his personal space in his moment of inaction. His feet threw him back but the explosion knocked him off balance and to the ground. His entire body was trembling, his pheromones filling the immediate area.

Reborn's nose twitched. "...did you finally realize, Dame-Tsuna?" the hitman asked, voice flat.

Tsuna _did_ , once he met the hitman's eyes.

Tsuna did not enjoy violence.

It was frightening, and scary, and the idea of hurting someone so much that their bones cracked under his fist, that their blood gushed over his skin – it horrified him. Tsuna didn't want to fight, didn't want to crush people beneath him just for the sake of it.

The smoke cleared, and Tsuna stared down the barrel of a green pistol.

Reborn was smiling. "You'll know when you die," the hitman said gently.

He pulled the trigger and pain exploded between Tsuna's eyes.

His fire swelled; Tsuna was distantly aware of his body hitting the ground and blood spurting from the wound between his eyes. Then there was rage but without the anger – it fueled the flames, pushing together into a form concentrated around a single unifying thought: s _top Gokudera with my Dying Will!_

Tsuna and the flame were one and the same now, and he tore through the bindings to emerge back into existence. Pure, unrestrained energy pushed him into motion and Tsuna exploded from the ground, barely taking Gokudera's shocked face into consideration as he surged forward towards the Beta.

Gokudera flung dynamite in his direction, seeming almost frantic. Instead of batting them away, Tsuna's fingers closed over the burning fuses awe-inspiringly fast, extinguishing them and letting the dynamite fall to the ground uselessly.

Gokudera _tsk'd,_ pulling out even more dynamite. "Double Bomb!" he shouted, lighting all the fuses at once and sending a cascade of explosives in Tsuna's direction. Once again, Tsuna snuffed out the fuses.

" _Fuck you!"_ Gokudera snapped out, arms now filled to capacity with dynamite.

Tsuna screamed back just as vehemently: _"No thank you!"_

Reborn's eye twitched.

"Triple Bomb!" Gokudera yelled, lighting all the dynamite in his hold. In his zealousness, one lit stick slipped from his over-filled hold and green eyes trekked the fallen explosive with horrified understanding. The distraction caused even more to spill from his hold, and through the raging intensity of the flames, Tsuna recognized the expression filtering onto Gokudera Hayato's face with startling clarity.

Acceptance.

For Gokudera, it was the acceptance of death.

For Tsuna, it was the acceptance of everything he'd hated long before he could name the emotion. Acceptance of his role as the Omega, as the submissive, as the one who bore the brunt of society's condescension. Tsuna had faced the continuous urging to just accept his role, just accept the expectations of his dynamic.

And Tsuna _fought_ it. It was the strength to fight it, to refuse what society had planned for him just because of the state of his body parts. Sometimes this meant looking Kurokawa in the eyes and letting the flames light his amber irises, it meant trying to make Reborn physically incapable of issuing an Alpha Demand, it meant beating Mochida down into the floor so that Tsuna knew he could stand up for himself.

This didn't mean Tsuna had to enjoy violence; Tsuna didn't want to subjugate others just because he could. That's why he was hesitant to fight Gokudera Hayato, who had no intention of dominating him, who didn't even seem to care that 'Omega' was part of the many labels associated with Sawada Tsunayoshi.

Tsuna dashed into Gokudera's periphery, hands moving faster than the human eye could see. Dynamite scattered around their feet, fuses vanquished, and green eyes watched in disbelief as Tsuna dropped to the floor, hands slamming over the last few lit fuses and nullifying the last of the threats to Gokudera's life.

The cigarettes fell from the bomber's slack-jawed mouth, and Tsuna kicked dirt over them to extinguish the glowing embers just as the flames receded back into him, coiling once more around his heart, satisfied.

Tsuna blinked the stinging smoke out of his eyes, taking in the scene around him. It was different from how his flames usually surged forth, and he felt much more exhausted afterwards. Not to mention colder-

 _Wait, where the hell are my clothes?!_ Tsuna suddenly realized, looking down at his naked chest, only his sunset-orange boxers keeping him a step closer to decent.

"I WAS MISTAKEN!"

Tsuna jerked forward in surprise, pivoting to find Gokudera kneeling, head slammed towards the ground. "You're the one who's fit to be the 10th Boss!" Gokudera continued loudly, looking up with an expression Tsuna hadn't known the delinquent teen capable of making.

A light pink flush had settled over pale cheeks, green eyes wide in open adoration. Gokudera-

"Tenth!" the Beta boy said excitedly. "Command me to do anything!"

Gokudera was a _fucking psycho._

"It's a Family rule to have the loser serve the winner," came Reborn's explanation, the tiny hitman emerging from wherever he'd been as to not get caught up in Gokudera's explosives. At the sight of him, Tsuna abruptly remembered when he'd seen him last: namely, putting a bullet between Tsuna's eyes.

"Reborn, you _shot_ me!" Tsuna screeched, pointing an accusing finger at the baby.

Reborn leapt forward and smacked Tsuna on the side of his head. "Don't point, Dame-Tsuna, it's rude," the Alpha baby chided airily.

Tsuna cradled the abused area in his hand, tears welling up in the corner of his eyes. That _hurt_. Reborn snorted, Leon transforming into a giant mallet which the hitman held in front of Tsuna threateningly. "Stop emitting that scent, I know you have some control over it," he ordered.

Tsuna frowned but allowed his Flames to dampen the pheromones that had flared up at Reborn's attack. The only reason he'd done as told was because not only had Reborn not made it a Demand, he also had solid reasoning; they didn't want people stumbling across two students in an exploded courtyard.

"I shot you with the Dying Will bullet," Reborn explained, Leon reverting back to lizard form as Tsuna's pheromones dissipated. "A person shot with it will resurrect with Dying Will."

Tsuna stared at Reborn. "You mean _I died?"_ he screeched.

"You got better," Reborn offered blandly. "Your Dying Will is based off on what you are regretting when you die."

Tsuna processed those words. What he regretted...

He regretted trying to get violent with Gokudera. "I wanted to _'stop Gokudera with my Dying Will'_ ," Tsuna said, more to himself. "All that dynamite... I thought he was going to get hurt." And explode the school, which wouldn't bode well for anyone. His Dying Will must have recognized what his troubled thoughts had yet to realize at the time, and lead him into stopping Gokudera.

"Tenth...!"

Tsuna turned. Thankfully, Gokudera had resumed his feet, but the adoring look on his face had only magnified. Tsuna stared back in bemusement, heat creeping across his face. Gokudera had absolutely no qualms matching his eyes, a Beta quality through and through; but unlike others, awe shined back in those pretty green irises.

"Tenth, I just want you to know, I actually had no ambitions to become the 10th boss," Gokudera started, his demeanor almost...shy. "It's just when I heard from Reborn-san that the 10th Boss was some civilian kid in Japan, I thought I should test his strength!"

 _Is Reborn just going to throw assassins at me and see if I survive?_ Tsuna wondered in horror. "That is not how tutoring works, Reborn!" Tsuna hissed out of the corner of his mouth. Reborn cleaned his Leon pistol, pretending not to hear.

"But you're much more than I expected!" Gokudera fairly gushed, brightening considerably.

Tsuna eyed the other male worriedly. "...in what way?"

"You saved me, even though I was trying to kill you!" Gokudera exclaimed, smiling. Tsuna was reminded of a puppy, could practically see a metaphorical tail and ears sprouting up on Gokudera's form. "You're amazing!"

This time, a hot blush stole across Tsuna's face, and he was shaking his head before he could even think about replying to Gokudera's sincere gratitude. This was the first time in Tsuna's entire life someone had ever looked at him like _that_ , and he wasn't sure how to react.

"N-No, I'm not amazing," Tsuna refuted, stumbling over his words in his embarrassment. "I'm just an Omega, you know?"

Did Gokudera even realize he was an Omega? He'd never even mentioned it, not when he was angry before and not when he was so- so _pleased_ now. Gokudera was a Beta, but even a Beta could recognize an Omega's scent, and surely the silver-haired teen would have noticed the way their classmates treated Tsuna.

"Tenth, you are amazing!" Gokudera insisted. "And you smell good!"

 _What._ "What?" Tsuna croaked out.

Reborn tensed.

"For putting your life on the line to save me," Gokudera continued, seemingly not realizing he'd frozen Tsuna with his unorothodox comment. "I'll give you my life! I'm your subordinate from now until the end of my days!"

Tsuna was shocked out of his stillness into incredulity. "My subordinate? _No!_ I'm not a mafia boss!" He'd almost forgotten the Beta boy was from the mafia!

Gokudera didn't seem to hear him, too excited by his newfound allegiance to Tsuna. "My life is yours to command!"

"Can't we just be normal classmates?!" Tsuna asked desperately.

Gokudera's green eyes flashed, expression turning sharp. "Absolutely not," he claimed ruthlessly.

"Congratulations, Dame-Tsuna, you have your first Family member," Reborn said. Tsuna was not imagining the amusement coloring the hitman's tone.

"Listen, Gokudera-kun, I'm flattered," Terrified, he was _terrified_. "But, uh, let's just be _friends_ instead, okay?

Gokudera was scary, and he was violent, and he carried around fucking dynamite – but he was also the first person to ever look Tsuna in the eyes and claim there was something more to him than just being an Omega. And Tsuna- Tsuna _really liked_ that.

"Is that an order, Tenth?" Gokudera asked, pleased expression on his face and excitement in his eyes.

It was also entirely possible Gokudera was something of a pervert.

"...I don't know," Tsuna replied cautiously. Which answer would get Gokudera to calm down a bit? Tsuna was worried about the abrupt personality shift, but then again – it was entirely possible Gokudera really was just this kind of person. He even admitted to only attacking Tsuna to 'test his strength' as a future boss; an impulsive move that temperamental youth are prone to.

There was something oddly innocent about Gokudera. Was this why his intuition hadn't registered him as a threat, as it had when Reborn had first appeared? Gokudera had no designs on him as a prospective Mate or whatnot, which meant he had no intention of trying to dominate Tsuna.

Was this why Tsuna didn't really mind Gokudera crowding so closely into his personal space like this? It couldn't be just because Gokudera was a Beta; Tsuna sometimes talked with the Betas in his classroom but preferred to be alone rather than suffer their patronizing demeanor for longer than necessary.

Possible perversion aside, at least Gokudera was sincere. Tsuna's intuition told him as much.

Just as Tsuna worked up the courage to accept his new friend (possible underling but Tsuna would deny that vehemently), Tsuna's intuition _screamed_. His Flames simmered along his veins, too exhausted to flare but recognizing danger when a hint of the coppery tang of blood and the earthy scent of green tea invaded the courtyard.

The other sense – the one that had nothing to do with dynamic and everything to do with survival – choked under the pressure.

"Killing intent," Reborn observed lowly, audible to Tsuna. But Tsuna didn't need to even look to know who had swept into the disaster of the first floor courtyard, heart hammering in his chest as he reluctantly turned amber eyes to the tall figure standing at the doors, the red armband of the Disciplinary Committee a stain of red against a monochrome backdrop.

 _I just made my first friend,_ Tsuna thought, terror numbing his mind. _And now I'm going to die._

Hibari Kyouya looked Tsuna in the eyes impassively, small smirk turning the corners of his lips up, steel tonfas gleaming under the afternoon sun.

"Little animal," Hibari started, Wrath itself given physical form. _"I will bite you to death."_

* * *

 **End Chapter 4**

* * *

 **A/N:** Out of the frying pan and into the fire~

 _Notes on Tsuna:_

-Tsuna reacts badly to attempts at being dominated, namely by Alpha's who react poorly to his resistance of said dominance. Most of the time, as seen - the reaction is violent. A lot of it also stems from his refusal to submit and his growing belief that he is not weak just because he's an Omega. However, this does not mean Tsuna actively enjoys violence - he is just capable of violence when needed. This sets him apart form others who are prone to fighting for violence's sake. This will be further fleshed out as the story continues.

-First appearance of the Dying Will bullet! Tsuna has some kind of natural control over his Flames, as seen in previous chapters; but consider it more along the lines as a heavily-subdued Hyper Dying Will mode. Those who fight against him can sometimes see Flames flash in his eyes, or in Mochida's case, even sparks fly across his skin - but it's not the continuous, flashing force of Dying Will or Hyper Dying Will. It makes Tsuna a more able fighter, but he has to rely far more on agility and flexibility - his strength is only moderate.

 _Notes on Gokudera:_

-Probably not a pervert (lol), but the chapter is from Tsuna's (flawed) view. A lot of the dialogue was taken form the manga, which was fun to re-read because the art style is so different and Gokudera's first appearance is hilarious.

Please be kind and drop a review. :)


	5. An itch you can never scratch!

**A/N:** Thanks so much to all those who reviewed! :)

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own _Katekyou Hitman Reborn._

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

* * *

" **Nothing is worse than having an itch you can never scratch!"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

 _Seven Years Ago_

"Kyouya."

Eight year old Hibari Kyouya looked up at the call, having previously been observing the rustle of the leaves as they crunched under foot. The distant sounds of Namimori preparing for sunset could be heard, past the shrubs and trees that obscured his vision from the small park he'd first passed to get to their current location.

His mother, dressed impeccably in pressed black slacks and a crisp white button-up, was looking down at him where he stood at her elbow. Hibari Sasako cut a sharp figure; no matter where she tread, she stood out with the sort of magnetism only the truly respectable Alphas carried. Her thin lips were usually pressed into a straight line, denoting neither interest no pleasure; she regarded everything under a steely grey gaze, seeing more than she ever said aloud.

Kyouya had inherited much from her. Virtually the only thing his Beta father had given him was the slim stature of his build and the sharpness of his jaw, but other than that – Kyouya was all Hibari Sasako.

His mother tilted her head just slightly, unnoticeable to anyone save those who knew her well. Kyouya nodded at the silent query: _what can you sense?_

Kyouya turned his gaze back to the immediate area. It was a small patch clear of shrubs and trees, nondescript for the way it faded into the wooded area that was spread throughout Namimori. His mother had brought him out with no explanation as to why, but figuring out the reason was part of her training – if he couldn't figure it out, it would be disappointing, and Kyouya had no intention of disappointing his mother.

First, Kyouya catalogued what he could see with his eyes: evergreen shrubs, chilly to the touch. Trees in a multitude of autmun colors, their dead leaves carpeting the ground. The patch of ground where they stood. An empty can of soda.

Next, he turned his attention to what he could smell: the natural earth under his feet, stronger than any other smell in the immediate area. But – _there_. It lingered, faint but present; a sharp scent, unpleasant to Kyouya but familiar in a sense. _Familiar how?_ Kyouya tried to place it, and it took him several moments, but finally his quick mind found the answer: Alpha. A lingering scent of Alpha, in an empty patch of woods, near a playground.

"Alpha," Kyouya stated, glancing up at his mother for confirmation.

The woman nodded, her expression unchanging but she brushed a hand across his neck in pleased acknowledgment. Kyouya had been right, then.

"Someone fooled themselves into thinking they are a carnivore," his mother said softly. Her eyes were on the ground closest to a tall shrub, the branches of which were crushed slightly, as if someone had crushed them trying to get past. "And a little herbivore paid the price."

To the Hibari's, the world was simple: herbivores and carnivores. The Hibari were carnivores: they claimed a territory, and the herds of herbivores that dwelled in their territory lived under their rule. The Hibari reigned over these herbivores, but they also protected them – from threats both foreign and domestic.

Kyouya's young face contorted into an expression of contempt, a simple narrowing of steel grey eyes and slight downturn of the lips, as close to a snarl he would ever come. The scent that was just him intensified, but he was too young for it to be much more than a sense of 'sharp'.

"They must be bitten to death," Kyouya said.

His mother gave a single nod but her eyes never left the ground. Smooth with a predator's grace, she lightly dug the tip of her black heeled foot into the ground, sweeping aside the dead leaves. Kyouya watched her actions in interest, brittle orange floating away to reveal cold, hard earth.

And-

His mother's scent suddenly filled the area, the taste of metal at the back of his throat and something remniscent of the tea she so favored. Kyouya found comfort in it, as children always do in the scent of their parents, but he kept his body still despite how he wanted to seek his mother's touch.

Hibari Sasako bent down, pale fingers closing over a charred fragment of human bone.

She was smiling.

"Little animals," she murmured, a purr to her voice as she turned the bone over in her hand. "Can be so interesting."

* * *

 _Present Day_

"I'll handle him, Tenth!" the silver-haired herbivore said, dynamite appearing in pianist's fingers. Hibari recalled the list of rules that governed Namimori Middle School – there was nothing against explosives. There was, however, a rule against resisting punishment from the Disciplinary Committee, which meant Hibari was justified in crushing the male before him.

That, and if dynamite were the herbivore's chosen "teeth," then he was littering school grounds. Hibari mentally slashed another tally mark against the youth. Fighting on school grounds – another mark. Smoking cigarettes while underage and on school grounds – two marks. Punishment: five times the normal level of violence Hibari enacted against violators.

"W-Wait, Gokudera-kun-" the fluffy-haired male started shrilly.

Hibari acknowledged this without a twitch. He knew the fluffy-haired boy, of course – Sawada Tsunayoshi. A little animal with a sweet scent.

And fatal poison.

Hibari launched forward, deciding to get minor threats out of the way before he took on more interesting prey. He knocked aside the explosives pelted in his direction with simple flicks of his tonfa, and then whipped his right arm forward in a slashing motion. Steel tonfa met soft flesh with a satisfying crunch, sending the silver-haired herbivore flying into the wall of the school building.

Hibari's eyes flicked to the noticeable cracks now in the wall, displeased. Six marks against the dynamite herbivore.

A very mild spark of pleasure flashed in Hibari's chest when the silver-haired teen stood up, if a bit wobbly and favoring the arm that Hibari's tonfa had not cracked. This particular herbivore was stronger than the usual herd, which was entertaining. Of course, Hibari would put him in his place all the same – Hibari was the carnivore of Namimori.

Hibari made to rush forward once more, intent on breaking more bones. Six times the level of usual violence was the punishment he'd decided on, after all, and he'd make sure the dynamite herbivore would be taken out of school grounds on a stretcher.

A sweet scent clogged his nostrils, and Hibari ducked to the side just as a pale leg came sweeping towards his face.

Grey eyes met burning amber. "Little animal," Hibari said coldly. "Wait your turn."

Then he swept the full length of his tonfa up, hitting Sawada Tsunayoshi full in the chin and sending the small male sprawling over the ground.

Hibari cataloged the slights: not dressed in his school uniform, one mark. Fighting on school grounds, one incident verified via his explosive-ridden battle with the dynamite herbivore; one incident under suspicion, given his proximity to the herbivore kendo captain at the time of assault. Attempted assault on a member for the Disciplinary Committe, another mark. Punishment: four times the usual level of violence.

"You bastard! How dare you hit the Tenth!" the dynamite herbivore screamed.

Hibari pivoted, moving forward once more; the silver-haired teen dodged one strike, but Hibari lashed forward with the other tonfa and struck the youth clean across the face. The herbivore fell to the ground, and this time Hibari knew he wasn't going to get up again.

Hibari turned his attention back to the little animal, who had moved back to his feet and was watching him with blazing amber eyes.

Sawada Tsunayoshi was poisonous. It was a proper defense for a little animal that would-be carnivores foolishly tried to dominate.

Hibari had never felt the need to do so, as unlike some others, the little animal understood his place in Hibari's domain. A little animal but not a carnivore, Sawada Tsunayoshi went about his life quietly and of no threat ot Hibari's order. Hibari only knew him because he was the carnivore of Namimori, and like any other strong predator, kept tabs on those that may come to affect his herds.

Hibari only knew of the poison that flowed throughout Sawada Tsunayoshi's veins because his mother had trained him to recognize that even little animals could be fatal to carnivores.

The poison added a highly-dangerous element to the little animal, and while that intrigued Hibari, he had order to maintain. One day, when the little animal finally fully grew into his fangs, Hibari would see how he fared against the animal that had made his mother smile.

Now, though – the chairman of the Disciplinary Committee had to act.

"I will not dominate you," Hibari stated, voice plain. "But I will bite you to death."

The little animal's eyes had widened at his statement, and the sweet scent receded from Hibari's immediate area. The Alpha male moved once more, tonfa whirling; the little animal was agile, keeping just out of his sweeping arcs. Hibari pushed more resolve into his movements, speed increasing, and was rewarded with tonfa connecting and a sharp intake of breath before the little animal was sent flying once more.

Instead of allowing the small boy to recover again, Hibari followed through, bringing his tonfa down on the little animal's exposed midsection. Pained and dazed by the abrupt loss of air, Hibari kicked forward and sent the little body flying across the ground once more.

He would not be getting up.

Hibari turned his eyes back to the unconscious silver-haired herbivore. He was injured, but not enough for an ambulance – Hibari would have to rectify that.

 _...Like spun sugar on the tongue._

One delicate hand grabbed Hibari's face; instinctively, Hibari lashed out, knocking the offender back with a forward stike of the tonfa. It hit a solid mass, five nails forced back but etching angry red marks that wept small droplets of blood from their trails across Hibari's face.

Sawada Tsunayoshi skidded back, managed to keep on his feet, only slightly hunched over and with amber eyes trained on Hibari.

The tonfa in Hibari's right hand fell into reserve, as he raised his fingers to his face to gently touch at the drops of blood slowly running from his new wounds. Hibari pulled back his hand to stare at the red on his fingers.

 _Little animals can be so interesting._

Hibari smiled, _"Wao."_

The smell of freshly-spilled blood and green tea swept through the courtyard, mingling with the scent of sugar so warm it bronzed.

"That's enough."

A small, high-pitched voice. Hibari's eyes were drawn to the suit-clad infant now standing between him and the little animal, one green pistol aimed in the prefect's direction. "You're strong after all," the baby said, speaking with a child's voice but an adult's words. "Hibari Kyouya."

"I don't know who you are," Hibari stated flatly. "But wait your turn."

Hibari made to move forward, aiming to knock aside the baby and go straight for the little animal that had set his blood to boil. He was intercepted when the baby procured a bomb from out of thin air, and grey eyes could only watch as the lit fuse reached its destination and exploded the first floor courtyard into a thick haze of dirt and debris.

Once the dust settled and smoke cleared, Hibari stood alone in a courtyard, only Murota's unconscious form lying untouched at the foot of the steps to the entry doors.

* * *

Tsuna trudged into his home, wincing slightly as the action of pushing open the front door pulled at his bruised ribs. Pain was ricocheting throughout his body, chin still smarting and his arms sore and so heavily bruised, it was like he'd been bashing them against concrete walls.

He'd survived an encounter with _the_ Hibari Kyouya.

Of course, he'd probably have ended up hospitalized had the fight continued on if not for Reborn, but just the fact that he'd managed for as long as he had made Tsuna feel pride in his own abilities. Even beating Mochida had not incurred such gratification. Tsuna had taken on Hibari in direct confrontation, and lived to tell the tale. Alphas three times his size could not say the same thing.

"Mom, I'm home," Tsuna called out, pulling at his jersey sleeves self-consciously. Reborn had tossed his PE jersey at him once they'd fled the courtyard, and Tsuna had hastily pulled it on before anyone could come by and see a half-naked Omega covered in injuries. It covered all of Tsuna's skin, save his face; but the only injury there was his chin, which could be hidden so long as Tsuna angled his head just right.

Gokudera wasn't quite as lucky.

"And I brought a friend," Tsuna added, just as his mother came down the stairs. Her honey-brown eyes widened at the sight: Tsuna dressed in his jersey, disheveled and chin undoubtedly bruised, and a bandaged Beta boy trailing behind her son.

Tsuna glanced back; Gokudera was glancing around the home, expression caught somewhere between abashed pleasure and eagerness. He had several bandages on his face, and more wrapped around his arms and – Tsuna knew, seeing as he'd wrapped them – his torso. Tsuna originally had wanted to take the bomber Beta to the hospital to be checked, but at Gokudera's horrifyingly detailed report on his own injuries, Tsuna figured the other boy knew if he needed a doctor or not.

"Nice to meet you!" Gokudera yelped, eyes now on Tsuna's mother. "I'm Gokudera Hayato, new subordinate!"

Tsuna flushed. " _Friend_ , Gokudera-kun – we're friends!"

"Yes, Tenth!" Gokudera agreed eagerly.

Reborn came swinging in at that moment, using Tsuna's head as a springboard to enter the Sawada home. "Gokudera Hayato is currently considered your Right Hand Man, Dame-Tsuna," the tiny hitman stated. "A good mafia boss knows how to treat his loyal subordinates."

"I'm not going to be a-" Tsuna was cut off as a Leon-hammer came swinging at his face.

"O-Oh," Nana said, wide eyes on Gokudera. "Yes, nice to meet you, too... um, Gokudera-kun." She sniffed at the air, expression turning pensive. Tsuna tensed, not knowing what to expect of his mother in response to his uncharacteristic behavior.

Tsuna had never brought home friends before. He'd never _had_ friends before; his status as an Omega had ostracized him, and his own personality alienated him from getting along with his Beta classmates. It had never been a point of concern for his mother, though, because he was an Omega after all – all he would need is a Mate and children.

And now here Tsuna was, bringing in a Beta boy who had clearly emerged from a fight. Gokudera was covered in bandages, slightly singed, adorned in skulls and chains and spikes. His foreign blood scultped his features exotically, long silver hair and pretty green eyes.

Tsuna stepped back, unsure, moving closer to Gokudera as if to shield him from his own mother. If Nana objected to his new friend, Tsuna had no idea what he'd do; his mother was important to him, had been his whole world for many years as Tsuna had scorned the one he'd been born into. Nana may not have understood him, limited as much by her dynamic as Tsuna was by his, but she had been there and she'd never faulted him just for being born Omega.

Nana's eyes widened even more at Tsuna's move, a thousand expressions flitting across her face at once before finally settling on one: _determination_. She smiled then, bright and cheerful. "Are you staying for dinner, Gokudera-kun? We're having nikujaga tonight!"

Tsuna marveled at his mother's abrupt change, as Gokudera hem-hawed at being invited for politeness' sake.

"Tsu-kun, why don't you go upstairs and get changed?" Nana suggested, flashing her son a reassuring smile. Tsuna relaxed, the intuition he relied on so much letting him know her message without her having to say it aloud.

 _Your friend is always welcome here._

Tsuna smiled back at her, slow and genuine. Nana's whole face lit up in response, and she laughed cheerfully as she went into the kitchen. Tsuna watched her go for a moment, overwhelmed by how much he loved her, before turning and leading his new friend up the stairs.

* * *

Tsuna tossed and turned in his bed, sheets tangled around his body, obscuring the bruises and scratches littered about his frame. He found he couldn't sleep, aware of every brush of fabric against his bruised flesh; his flame was emanating soothingly from his chest, but it was his intuition that kept him awake - forcing his mind to go through the memories of the day over and over again.

Tsuna was bothered by something, he just couldn't find _what_. It couldn't have been Gokudera; if it had, it would have occured to him before the other boy had left after dinner. (Gokudera had given Tsuna that big smile he'd shown him before, all awestruck. Tsuna had felt pretty awe-struck himself, receiving such an expression in the first place.) So it couldn't have been his fight with Gokudera and subsequent new friendship that had Tsuna's intuition on edge.

Was there something to his fight with Hibari? It had been exhilirating, but not something Tsuna was keen on repeating. However, the older boy was...odd, in a way Tsuna had never realized. Perhaps because he'd never directly interacted with the demonic prefect before, but surely it would have been more natural for an Alpha to at least hesitate in attacking an Omega.

Hibari had not held back in trying to beat Tsuna down. The older boy lived and breathed violence, but from the few words he'd said in the midst of their fight, Tsuna realized there was more than just bloodthirst to Hibari Kyouya.

" _I will not dominate you."_

Why had Hibari said that? Why had he _known_ to say that? The words had broken through the cloud of flames that had pushed Tsuna's body to resist, the Omega in him believing Hibari's series of attacks were laden with the intent to dominate him. His natural urge to resist had lead him to trying to subdue someone who had littered the streets with the beaten and bloody bodies of yakuza.

But Hibari had said he had no intention of dominating Tsuna. _Just 'biting me to death',_ Tsuna remembered. Biting held its own horrible connotations, but every Namimori citizen had heard and known the Hibari family's unusual catchphrase. They meant biting – not in an innocent way, per se, but definitely in a non-sexual way.

It was as if Hibari did not care for dynamics either.

Tsuna knew the other boy had strange ways of referring to others: crowds, herds, herbivores. Tsuna couldn't recall a time he'd ever heard Hibari use terms like 'Omega', or 'Alpha, or 'Beta', but Tsuna had never actually spent time around Hibari Kyouya. He'd never had a death wish, after all.

But if the boy did not care for dynamics, his actions certainly didn't match: he'd staked a claim on Namichuu, arguably even Namimori as a whole. No one did that without some primal instinct fueling them.

Tsuna remembered steel grey eyes, and the smell of blood and tea.

How primal was primal?

"Dame-Tsuna, do I need to shoot you for you to go to sleep?"

Tsuna startled, turning over in bed to see the tiny hitman reclined in his hammock. Reborn had set up his own sleeping area in Tsuna's room, to Nana's agitation; guns and bullets and all manner of weapons were interspersed with Tsuna's schoolbooks, multi-sized pillows, and heaps of fluffy pastel-colored blankets. The end result looked like an Omega was trying to build a nest with guns and ammo, and Tsuna was still trying to figure out if that amused him or not.

"Death is the final sleep," slipped out of Tsuna's mouth before common sense could stop it.

Reborn cocked his gun threateningly.

"Just kidding!" Tsuna shot out hurriedly, burrowing under his covers and moving into the corner furthest from Reborn. He eyed the hitman distrustfully for several mintues, but eventually relaxed enough so that his gaze was blurred as his thoughts ran wild, a blur of gecko-patterned baby pajamas halfway in sight.

There was something about Reborn.

Tsuna's eyes fluttered closed.

Well, there were a lot of things about Reborn. He was a mafia hitman, he had a magical pet gecko, he was a sinfully good shot, he was an Alpha, he had the body of a baby, and he was a one hundred percent verified sadist. That all bothered Tsuna, to wild and varying degrees, but it wasn't what was keeping him up.

Tsuna's eyes opened slowly, bringing the room back into focus. Reborn was always close to Tsuna; in his school, in his house, in his room, practically in his bed at this point. He was always watching Tsuna, analyzing him, but Reborn's thoughts were too obscure for Tsuna to truly understand.

 _Reborn was always watching him._

That, there was something about that. Tsuna knew why, kind of, abstractly; Reborn had outright admitted he was there to turn Tsuna into a mafia boss. It was only natural he'd watch Tsuna.

But when Tsuna watched Reborn watch him, he couldn't understand what the hitman was thinking.

Awareness swam back to Tsuna's mind. "Reborn," Tsuna's voice was so quiet, as if he were afraid to breathe the words into existence. His intuition was buzzing, urging him on, so he was on the right path – but his survival instincts were warning him as well, coming to life to tingle up his arms and legs.

Reborn did not answer him. A light snore met his ears.

 _He's faking it,_ Tsuna knew automatically.

"Reborn," Tsuna said again, a bit louder, much more firm. The light snoring continued, but so did Tsuna. "How did you know about Mochida?"

Tsuna had confirmed Reborn's suspicions about being the one to beat up the older Alpha earlier, but how did Reborn know Tsuna was involved in the first place? He hadn't been present when the Disciplinary Committee had detained Tsuna for questioning, and rumors hadn't spread until the next day. So how did Reborn know about Tsuna's involvement in the incident when Reborn had seemingly been in the Sawada home the entire day.

Reborn was always watching Tsuna, but what if watching wasn't the _only_ thing he was doing?

Tsuna sat up, amber eyes on the infant. _"The letter was forged,"_ Tsuna murmured. The pieces came together, the picture clearing, verified by his intuition – one of the few sources in Tsuna's life that had never lied to him. "You forged the challenge letter, so that Mochida and Iwasaki would fight over me."

But that didn't make sense. Mochida was gifted with the bokken, and popular, and an Alpha to boot – if Reborn had wanted to acquire him for the Family he seemed so dead-set on Tsuna gathering, there were better ways of convincing Mochida to join. So why had Reborn forged a challenge letter?

"No, not to fight over me," Tsuna corrected himself. Iwasaki would not have known about the letter, despite being the supposed challenger. If Mochida had accepted it at face-value, he would have set up a kendo match with someone who had not known to show up.

" _You knew,"_ Tsuna breathed out, eyes wide. _"You knew_ Mochida would call me out. _You knew_ he would tell me about the challenge."

It had nothing to do with Iwasaki, or Mochida, or Alpha challenges. They were only a means to an end, and the end – _the end was Tsuna._ But what did that mean? What had Reborn been trying to discover?

Reborn already knew about Tsuna's refusal to submit; Tsuna had spent their first meeting trying to incapacitate Reborn just because of that. There was nothing new to the hitman about Tsuna lashing out against dominance displays done against his person. So what was Reborn looking for? What was he trying to confirm?

Tsuna understood then. Reborn had not only been trying to gauge how Tsuna would react to an Alpha of his peer group attempting an act of dominance on him, he'd been trying to see how Tsuna would deal with it. No, not just that – Reborn had to have known Tsuna would react violently, had expected as much when he'd set up Tsuna as the prize. Tsuna, who resisted subjugation with such hostile force that his flame helped him attempt to crush the world's number one hitman.

Tsuna had fought Reborn, too, after all.

 _Reborn saw something that day,_ Tsuna realized, the clarity of his understanding so sharp that he found it hard to breathe.

The flame around his heart uncurled.

 _Oh._

Tsuna laid back down in his bed, amber eyes still on Reborn's falsely-sleeping figure.

Tsuna had not needed a magic bullet to be set aflame, and Reborn...had not expected that.

* * *

 **End Chapter 5**

* * *

 **A/N** : I know, short chapter, but I'm crashing from four cups of coffee... Don't judge lol.

Guess what~ Yamamoto finally comes in next chapter!

 _Notes about Hibari:_

-He knows about the whole A/B/O thing, of course - but they're about as important to him as gender was in the canon series.

 _ **Please be kind and drop a review. :)**_


	6. Milk and Cookies

**A/N** : Yamamoto Takeshi is mess.

-Thank you so much for your reviews! :)

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own _Katekyou Hitman Reborn._

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

* * *

" **Milk and cookies kept you awake, eh, Sebastian?"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

"Are we done choosing teams?"

Tsuna watched his classmates disperse with hollers. He was sat in the bleachers nearby, excused from any actual work in PE as always; he'd have to help clean up afterwards, of course, a task his teachers felt comfortable assigning him as it was a skill Omega would have to develop.

Tsuna, for the first time, didn't really mind. His whole body ached, still recovering from Hibari's onslaught just last week. He hadn't seen the prefect today, thankfully – Tsuna almost believed he'd have to face the Disciplinary Committee's chairman at the front gates, as prefects manned the school at all hours of the day.

It was a relatively quiet day, all things considered. Gokudera had skipped class, showing up at Tsuna's house early in the morning to explain he had to go and "re-stock" his dynamite supply. Tsuna chose not to think about that, fearing he'd be worried for Japan's future if dynamite was readily available in a place like Namimori. Instead he'd nodded and sent Gokudera off with a smile (and breakfast, courtesy of Nana), then started walking to school.

In a change of pace, Reborn had followed him. There'd been no change in Reborn's behavior, even with Tsuna's epiphany two nights ago that had left Vongola's apparent heir wary of his own tutor. Tsuna doubted Reborn was actually sleeping through his deduction process that night, but just like Reborn, he was not going to bring it up. Currently, they'd exist in this limbo where Tsuna was just as shocking to Reborn as Reborn was to Tsuna.

The baby hitman had disappeared before Tsuna had reached school, and classes resumed as they always had. There was some gossip about the courtyard; someone had apparently seen Gokudera beating up Murota last week, so everyone was currently under the assumption the resulting wreckage of the first floor courtyard was a fight between Hibari and Gokudera. Gokudera's absence gave credence to the fact, many students believing the wild boy to be hospitalized, as all Hibari's victims were after a fight with him.

Tsuna curled a little more in on himself, smothering a smile.

All those who fought Hibari ended up in the hospital – except for Tsuna. He'd gone toe-to-toe with the prefect, and emerged with only bruises hidden by clothes and body aches. Tsuna couldn't help but feel proud about it. He knew a lot of that had to do with Reborn's crazy bullets. 'Dying Will' had given him a strength he'd never imagined, allowing him to get up no matter how hard Hibari had struck him.

The memory of the 'dying will', of what Tsuna had felt as he and the flame had become a single entity – it was exhilarating. Everything about Tsuna had fell away: that he was a student, that he failed so many of his courses, that he was an Omega; all of that didn't matter in the face of the flames. And that had been _freeing_.

Tsuna's attention was pulled back to the mock-kickball match as his classmates went particularly loud in their shrieking. It was an Alpha-Beta mixed game, although some of the Beta girls had opted out of participating and instead were running the track around the baseball field; that was only an excuse to act as a sort of cheering squad, though.

Tsuna, as the sole Omega, was excused from all PE activities. He'd spend his time in the bleachers, seated atop a plush cushion like a glorified trophy. In order to excuse his lack of participation in physical education, the teacher had him clean up after the activities were done; a common practice for Namichuu's Omega students.

Tsuna had tried participating in his first term. This had subsequently led to Iwasaki and Murota acting like idiots, disqualifying Tsuna from future endeavors. This was also a common routine for the teachers: allowing the Omega students to try and participate, and upon the inevitable fallout, giving the Omega a way out of future PE activities. This helped to solidify the Omega as someone to shelter, and also staved off possible jealousy by their classmates when they saw that the Omega was not forced to participate in PE activities.

Clever and systemic. The reminder caused Tsuna's heart to burn.

PE came to a close; the Blue team, led by Yamamoto Takeshi, easily defeated their opposing team, led by Iwasaki. As they were all classmates and it was hard for anyone to feel anything negative for Yamamoto who was still injured, the results were taken graciously.

The teacher motioned for Tsuna to start cleaning as his classmates trotted off, and then soon the teacher himself was gone, leaving Tsuna alone on empty baseball field with a broom in hand. Tsuna eyed the scattered equipment, only mildly irritated; while it was true he'd been rather vindictive lately, it was hard to work up those same emotions when faced with something he was used to. This was just the way things were for Omega.

 _Omega need to submit._

Tsuna's grip on the brom tightened, the handle creaking under the hold.

"Help has arrived!"

Tsuna eased his grip, eyes widening as he turned to view the owner of the voice. Yamamoto Takeshi had walked up, smiling cheerfully, broom in his left hand, his right still wrapped up in a cast.

There was something very peaceful about Yamamoto. He was an Alpha, and it was obvious in his scent: as sharp as the knives his father used to slice sushi, and something reminiscent of the air after a rainstorm. He was refreshing, with all the charisma of an Alpha but the genuine kindness and good cheer that was only Yamamoto. He was popular in school for his prodigal skill in baseball, although recently Tsuna heard the baseball team's star pitcher was in a bit of a slump. In an effort to get out of that slump, he'd practiced too hard and ended up breaking his arm just a couple days ago.

"Oh, you don't have to, Yamamoto-kun," Tsuna said, almost meaning it. This would be the first time Tsuna ever had a conversation with the Alpha boy without his classmates around to act as a buffer.

"It's fine, it's fine!" Yamamoto laughed, broom to the floor as he began to help sweep. "Two people cleaning is faster than one."

No one ever expected Alphas to help clean. There was something of an underlying expectation that they wouldn't need to; they'd eventually find a mate to do such basic chores, so it was better they focus on their studies or their athetlic pursuits. Kurokawa, for all her micromanagement, often foisted off her school cleaning duties to Tsuna with the excuse he needed them to teach him some sense of responsibility.

"Hey, Sawada," Yamamoto started, after Tsuna attempted to wander further away under the excuse of cleaning the other side of the field. _Why are we both cleaning the same side?_ Tsuna wondered, now more than a little irritated. If Yamamoto was going to help, he could at least be smart about it. "Aren't you a bit different lately?"

The serious tone in Yamamoto's voice was uncharacteristic. Tsuna glanced over, his intuition peaked, but Yamamoto looked normal. "What do you mean?" Tsuna asked after a moment, when no further clarification came forward.

"I don't know how to explain it," Yamamoto laughed, rubbing at the back of his neck. A nervous gesture, Tsuna's intuition informed him. "You just seem different. Like you have more of an _oomph_ than usual."

 _...am I supposed to understand what that sound effect means?_ Tsuna wondered, staring at the Alpha boy haplessly. Tsuna suddenly remembered Yamamoto, for all his many virtues, did just as badly as Tsuna did in school.

"...is that good or bad?" Tsuna asked.

Yamamoto finally turned to look at him, dark eyes matching amber. Tsuna consciously placed his stare on Yamamoto's ear.

"...it's just different," Yamamoto replied softly. Tsuna's intuition urged him instinctively, the fire around his heart glowing briefly, but Tsuna was still tying to place what the other boy's tone could possibly mean. Yamamoto didn't move.

Tsuna's eyes did, tentatively meeting Yamamoto's once more.

"Is that good," Tsuna replied just as softly. "Or bad?"

Yamamoto didn't say anything, and after several long moments, the Alpha turned away first.

* * *

Yamamoto Takeshi was born April 24th on a bright, sunny day.

He was born to loving parents, Yamamoto Tsuyoshi and Keiko. His Alpha father had proudly held him within Takeshi's first hour of life in this world, and his Omega mother cooed over him every moment after. She'd taught him his first word, held his hands as he took his first steps, and smiled encouragingly as he attempted to play with the baseball she had gifted him.

On a day just as bright as his birth's, his mother died.

The official report labels the death as accidental; there is a gas leak in the house, and Yamamoto Keiko dies during her afternoon nap. Tsuyoshi had taken then five year old Takeshi out to the local park to play, returning home only to find poor Keiko laying atop the bed, heart never to beat again. The autopsy cites inhalation of gas as the official cause of death, and Yamamoto Keiko is cremated two days later. All the official reports are stamped with Hibari Sasako's seal.

The truth is not so clear cut.

The facts: Yamamoto Keiko dies on a sunny day. Takeshi was five years old. Hibari Sasako stamps the reports and closes the files.

The truth: Yamamoto Tsuyoshi commutes daily to his sushi restaurant, and is gone from the Yamamoto home for that reason. (He is saving up to purchase a larger restaurant, one that can also serve as a home.) Yamamoto Keiko is home, folding the laundry inside as Takeshi plays with a baseball out front.

When the sun grows too hot and Takeshi too hungry, he goes back inside his home calling for his mother. Her scent lingers in the home, but it's so much sharper than he's used to, and there's something new about it.

Takeshi does not get to see why directly. His father comes storming in through the front door seconds later, Alpha pheromones – something Takeshi learns about much later – fierce and filling the immediate area. His father orders him to hide, and Takeshi does, and so he only hears the rest: yelling, and clanging steel, and a sound similar to his father's knife slicing into the flesh of something that used to be alive.

Takeshi emerges from his hiding spot in the kitchen cupboards, grabbing one of the kitchen knives as he eyes the interior of his home. The clanging and the shouts have stopped, instead replaced by a soft crooning in his father's voice. Takeshi follows the sound, up the narrow stairs and into his parents' bedroom.

There is so much wrong with the bedroom, and Takeshi lacks the maturity to fully understand it. The red smears, the strangers littered around the floor, the foul smell, a thick taste of copper invading his throat; Takeshi hardly registers this, focusing on his father, one hand holding his mother's body, the other a long blade covered in red.

The sun shines through the bedroom window, alighting on Yamamoto Keiko's unseeing eyes.

The rest is a blur, and the memory is stifled by age and a lack of clarity. Yamamoto Takeshi will spend one afternoon five years later looking up the obituary on his mother, will see the official reports by Namimori's police ruling the death accidental. He forgets, almost.

What Takeshi does remember is Hibari Sasako kneeling down to match his eyes, finely-manicured hands gripping his shoulders. "You must be stronger," she had said, her words lined with power.

"Why?" he asked.

Takeshi knows, _just knows_ , that his father is strong. And yet his mother is still dead.

"So you can protect what's important to you," she had replied.

Yamamoto Takeshi does not say it, but he thinks it:

 _How one-sided._

* * *

Yamamoto Takeshi meets Sawada Tsunayoshi on a rainy day.

It's the first day of school, and their classes are gathered in the auditorium for the opening ceremony. Namimori Junior High is a nice, clean campus, and his father had been pleased Takeshi would be attending. Takeshi thinks this is in part to Hibari Kyouya's attendance to the same institution; Hibari Sasako's son is a figure of awe and terror in their town, but the owner of Take Sushi regards the boy like a protector. Takeshi, who has had no interaction with the fearsome boy-Alpha, shrugs off his father's convictions with the same guileless smile he did with most things outside of baseball.

The auditorium is buzzing with energy but conversation is quiet, mostly in part to said frightening prefect. Hibari Kyouya stands atop the stage along with the faculty and student leaders, his dark eyes surveying their numbers like a despot king. He is there only for the first minute, and once the ceremony actually starts, he disappears out the door with determination to hunt down the Namichuu students who dared miss the opening event.

Takeshi zones out from that moment on, standing in line with his peers. It's a single line, divided first by secondary gender, and then each section alphabetized. Yamamoto's eyes drift over his class's line in consideration; the Alphas are put in the back, the better to keep everything in view. Iwasaki is distracted for most of the ceremony, Kurokawa has slipped a book out and has started to read, and Murota glances around at the other Alpahs around them with a small frown. Betas, a majority of the line, are in the middle; they're restless but mostly complacent. The few classes that have Omega have put them at the very front of line, so that they are clearly visible to the teachers.

Yamamoto's class is one of the few. Sawada Tsunayoshi stands at the front of the line, shoulders hunched, eyes on the floor. He is small and thin, and unlike some of the other Omega in the auditorium, he doesn't look around cautiously.

Takeshi's eyes idle on him a moment longer, and then move on.

* * *

"That stupid Sawada," Kurokawa had muttered, audible to Takeshi as he returned from his errand for Inoue-sensei. The Alpha girl was bent over the class register, scowling fiercely. "He forgot his homework again."

Ikeda giggled, waving her hands in a conciliatory manner. "It's not a big deal, ne?" the Beta girl offered. "Cut him some slack, Hana-chan; you know he's not the brightest."

"At least he's cute," Kakei shrugged lightly.

Kurokawa muttered some more under her breath, slamming the register closed and stalking out of the classroom. Takeshi watched her go, wondering if he should step in; Kurokawa was a fright when her rigid management was in any way compromised, and she had a bit of a temper when it came to her classmates, specifically the ones she'd labelled "monkeys." It was fine when she snapped at some of the Betas, and she'd gone head to head with Murota a few times when he got too obnoxious – but if she snapped on their class's Omega, it'd reflect badly on them as a whole.

Yamamoto was all about teamwork.

With a smile and wave to his lingering classmates, he left the class. Sawada had been assigned to take out the trash, so Kurokawa had probably went to confront him on his return. Sure enough, Yamamoto found them in the eastern stairwell, the place deserted – probably from Kurokawa's clearly riled pheromones.

The most frightening thing about Hana was not her temper, but the fact that her temper could be _controlled_ ; she did not rage, she _criticized_. Her words were spitfire, burning everything under her to their base. It's why she could win against the likes of Murota and Iwasaki, who so often let their more base emotions run them.

"...and I'm sure it's hard for you," Hana was saying, voice chilly and steeped in such sarcasm that Takeshi felt bad for Sawada on principle. "Being able to sleep through classes on that cushioned seat of yours, but try to at least think of the rest of us. Every time you forget a homework assignment, Inoue-sensei assigns extra for _all_ of us as punishment!"

Takeshi could see her point, but he personally didn't find it that big of a deal. It was just the only way teachers could actually punish Omega students; singling them out looked bad, so if they punished the collective, at least the Omega student was part of that. Their class had just learned to accept it, especially with the ditzy Sawada Tsunayoshi as a classmate. Besides, as a small mercy, Inoue had not assigned them that much extra.

But Kurokawa Hana was a woman of principle.

"I'm sorry, Kurokawa-san," Sawada had replied lowly. His voice seemed to hint this was not the first time he'd said it. "I'll make sure not to forget again. Today was just a bad day-"

"That was your excuse last time, Sawada!" Kurokawa hissed, pheromones flaring. Sawada flinched in reaction.

"I-It's just," Sawada had stammered out. "M-My dad returned home last night, and I-I got distracted."

Kurokawa let out an explosive breath. The entire class knew Sawada was raised in a practically one-person household, and more importantly, one that lacked proper Alpha guidance. This was the reason many attributed to Sawada's lackadaisical nature.

"You could do with an Alpha, Sawada," Kurokawa had said, a throwaway line more than anything. If the Sawada's had not found a surrogate Alpha for their son in all this time, there was no way they'd start now. They seemed content to let their child remain listless throughout his adolescence, likely waiting for him to come of age so they could Mate him. It was a common practice for Beta parents with Omega children, although there was a recent rise in popularity to find Alpha surrogates to help guide their Omega children.

It should have stopped there. Kurokawa could nag but seemed to see there was no point in persisting when it came to their class's Omega, and she could just walked away. She would have, too, but then Sawada...stilled.

"I could?" Sawada had said, voice still quiet.

Takeshi felt something brush down his spine.

Kurokawa was looking down at the Omega, both figuratively and literally. (Sawada was one of the smallest in the class, of equal size to the Beta Sasagawa Kyoko.) She was still scowling. "You could," she asserted, more from obstinacy than conviction. "They'd protect you, hopefully from your own idiocy."

Wrong.

 _Protect what's important you._

No matter how strong the Alpha, they could not hope to protect those they loved from everything. What a funny (ridiculous) idea. Takeshi's father was strong, and yet his mother was still dead.

Because Omega are weak.

"...an Alpha like you?" Sawada's voice broke through, stilling the breath in Takeshi's lungs. The voice was still low, still the characteristic quiet – but it was so much more. The very air in the room seemed to sizzle ,and Takeshi's eyes locked once more on the petite form. Takeshi could not see Tsuna's face, as he faced the boy's back, but Kurokawa's expression was in clear view.

The Alpha girl's eyes were wide, and she'd – taken a step back?

Yamamoto's instincts told him to run, but he remained rooted to the spot. He remained there as Sawada Tsunayoshi turned, and Takeshi could see why Hana could say nothing in response to the small boy in front of her.

Amber eyes seemed to glow with some inner flame, Sawada's face a smooth mask of indifference. He continued walking down the stairs, descending to the first floor without another word to the Alpha girl he'd left stunned in his wake.

Alphas were strong, until they weren't. Omegas were weak...

Until they weren't.

* * *

Takeshi is the first to notice, despite how carefully Kurokawa Hana observes him. Sawada Tsunayoshi's change is not gradual, or perhaps – perhaps he had not changed, only finally torn down the blinds he'd kept up for so long.

Mochida Kensuke, captain of the kendo club, calls out Sawada one normal school day. Yamamoto watches the Omega boy leave, knows Kurokawa does the same, and he wonders if perhaps they are thinking the same thing.

Takeshi doubts it. Kurokawa had frozen in fear from what she had glimpsed in Sawada's eyes that day; Takeshi had been revitalized because of it.

All his life, Takeshi had been told two things about himself: he was an excellent baseball player, and he'd likely end up with an Omega. It was a commonly-held notion that Alpha children born to Alpha/Omega parents sought out Omega to mate with; an ideal family, all things considered. Beta were not as attuned to pheromones, and so sometimes there was friction in the family dynamic; an Omega could read their Alpha's pheromones well, and served as the ideal submissive for their partners.

Yamamoto Keiko had been ideal. Gentle and submissive, she'd never raised her voice or hand against others. She cleaned house and cooked meals perfectly, and she raised an Alpha boy, content with her family as all Omega should be.

Yamamoto Keiko was dead.

" _You must be stronger, to protect what's important to you."_

Sawada Tsunayoshi returns to class, attempts to finish his lunch before the bell rings, and sits through classes not even feigning interest in the lessons. As classes end, and before the Omega can get started on his assigned classroom cleaning duties, prefect Kusakabe stops by and escorts the boy out for questioning.

Takeshi hears why at baseball practice that afternoon: Mochida Kensuke had been found, beaten and unconscious, in one of the school science labs. Sawada Tsunayoshi is the last one to have seen him.

Takeshi's teammates ponder on how Mochida ended up that way, remark on Sawada's good fortune to not get caught in the same state – _"Worse for an Omega, right? No one wants used goods!"_ Hirano chortled. – and practice resumes as normal. Takeshi sits out, only there to act as moral support until his arm heals, and instead lets himself ruminate on his classmate.

The next day, Takeshi sits in his desk before homeroom starts and his eyes find Tsuna once more. The boy is seated on his plush orange seat cushion – all Omega in the school have their own cushions, to provide them with more comfortable seating. Omega are delicate, don't you know? – and his eyes are on his open notebook.

Gokudera Hayato – Beta, and exotic, and furious – is introduced to their class. He bullies Tsuna in the first five minutes of his introduction, and Takeshi's eyes remain on Tsuna throughout the class.

Takeshi wonders how long before Gokudera, too, is burned.

The answer comes the following week, when Gokudera is absent – hospitalized, some people whisper – and the first floor courtyard is in the process of reconstruction. Sawada Tsunayoshi sits on his plush orange seat cushion, as always, eyes on his open notebook, as always. There is a light bruise on his chin, so light that unless one looked closely, they would not see it.

But Takeshi is always looking at Sawada Tsunayoshi.

After their PE lesson, Takeshi pretends to leave with the rest of class, before doubling-back and grabbing a broom on the way. He finds Tsuna still on the baseball field, alone and small, broom in hand but not moving.

 _What are you thinking about?_ Takeshi wonders, looking at the other male. Could he be thinking about Mochida, claiming to have been ganged up on by five Alphas? (Mochida, beaten and broken, who no longer went near their class despite his previous crush on Sasagawa Kyoko.) Could he be thinking about Gokudera, his unknown anger and subsequent absence? (Gokudera, who'd dared sneer and snarl at him, and then disappeared.)

"Help has arrived!" Takeshi says aloud, and finally, Tsuna turns his attention on him.

Takeshi has never had Tsuna's undivided attention before. Classmates for half a year, Takeshi watching the other boy for most of that time – and yet Tsuna had never done the same. Now, standing alone in Takeshi's home turf (territory), there was something...exciting, about the fact that Sawada Tsunayoshi stood so close, acknowledging Takeshi's existence.

"Oh," Tsuna says, voice quiet, familiar. His scent was amazing, so sweet and warm; like a dollop of honey, put atop a trap waiting to catch and maim predators. "You don't have to, Yamamoto-kun. Your arm-"

"It's fine, it's fine!" Takeshi laughs off. "Two people cleaning is faster than one."

Tsuna murmurs a soft, bemused 'thank you'. Alphas aren't known to be particularly good with household chores, something Takeshi had never understood; in a house like his, with two Alphas, they couldn't just wait around for someone to clean up after them.

Some of his neighbors had expected his father to take another mate, if only to provide a homebody to help with household chores and raise Takeshi. However, Takeshi's father had not – against the general wisdom of the neighborhood – and had raised Takeshi by himself. With a business to run, Takeshi had been left in charge of chores, and he'd done it all without issue. What did dynamic have to do with basic responsibilities?

The ridiculous idea served Takeshi well today though. With Tsuna left alone in charge of cleaning, Takeshi could enjoy his company without their classmates watching. Tsuna was always interesting to Takeshi, but there was a part of him he'd hidden so carefully that Takeshi could only glimpse the aftermath.

"Hey, Sawada," Takeshi started carefully. He dropped the cheer from his tone, as it always made him sound like he was joking, and the last thing Tsuna was was a joke. "Aren't you a bit different lately?"

But Tsuna had always been different; it was just that he'd finally started to show what that really meant recently.

"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked, voice subdued. A familiar chill swept down Takeshi's spine, and he welcomed it.

"I don't know how to explain it," Takeshi laughed, rubbing the back of his neck, suddenly nervous. He didn't want Tsuna to see him the way he saw Kurokawa, or Mochida, or Gokudera; he wanted Tsuna to see him to see _Yamamoto Takeshi_. Not the baseball prodigy, not an Alpha wanting to protect Tsuna from himself. "You just seem different. Like you have more of an _oomph_ than usual."

"...is that good or bad?" Tsuna asked.

Like honey, like scorched sugar; the smell was on the tip of Takeshi's tongue. Blazing, blazing amber; Takeshi turned fully to the other boy but Tsuna wasn't looking at him directly. _Please look at me_ , Takeshi willed but would not say, would not allow for the slightest twitch because if Tsuna didn't do it for himself, it was useless.

"It's just different," Takeshi replied, voice going soft. _Please look at me, please please look at me-_

Amber eyes met his, lit by a smoldering fire. Takeshi felt a rush grip him, similar to the way he felt during a particularly good baseball game.

"Is that good," Tsuna repeated, soft and candid and _deadly_. "Or bad?"

Takeshi could not respond, not even after several moments. His body wanted to react, but his instincts were screaming at him – his survival instincts telling him to flee, his Alpha instincts telling him not to submit. Takeshi ended up turning away, breaking the hold those amber eyes had on him, and he resumed sweeping.

After a minute, Tsuna continued sweeping as well.

 _Run. . Dominate._

"Sawada," Yamamoto stated, voice as strong as steel. His pheromones slipped out. Tsuna stopped sweeping. "Can you meet me here tonight? There's... There's something I want to talk to you about."

"...that doesn't sound very safe, Yamamoto-kun," Tsuna replied.

What was dangerous? The Disciplinary Committee members who patrolled at night, finding them on school grounds after hours? Tsuna meeting with an Alpha like Yamamoto alone? ...or Yamamoto meeting with someone like _Tsuna_ alone?

"Please," Takeshi asked. His hands trembled.

Atop a rooftop looking down on the baseball field, Reborn watched them thoughtfully.

* * *

"Dad, I'm going out," Takeshi said, rushing from the stairs that lead up to their home proper to the front door of Take Sushi.

His dad looked up, waving and calling out a farewell; Takeshi was too much of a good, responsible son for Tsuyoshi to question where he'd be going at 8 at night. Takeshi mentally thanked his popularity; his father probably thought he was going out with friends or something along those lines.

Takeshi jogged the way to school, adrenaline and excitement evident in his scent. He had to make a conscious effort to reign it in, unwilling to let his natural reactions garner suspicion. Being on school grounds so late at night was already delinquent activity.

It hadn't been a promise, though, and Tsuna had protested even more after Takeshi had persisted in his request and even set a meeting time. They'd split ways after cleaning, Takeshi making sure to state he'd be waiting at the school, and then left before Tsuna could say anything to dissuade him.

Takeshi's Alpha instincts had wanted him to be more assertive, to _demand_ that Tsuna meet him at the time. Takeshi easily and efficiently ignored it. He wouldn't let hormones get in the way when he was so close to finally seeing the real Sawada Tsunayoshi.

Namimori Junior High was practically deserted, front gates locked and all lights except for exterior safety lights off. Takeshi waited at the corner adjacent to the gates, knowing better than to be seen loitering too close. His heart was hammering in his chest and his eyes scanned the streets, hopeful.

His hopes were answered. Sawada Tsunayoshi was coming down the road, dressed in jeans and an orange hoodie. He'd pulled the hoodie over his head, but Takeshi recognized that figure and stride.

Takeshi moved forward, smiling. "You came," he greeted. There must have been something to his demeanor and scent, because Tsuna only looked up at him questioningly. (Because it was excitement and relief that Yamamoto Takeshi gave off, not arrogance – and Tsuna didn't understand that.) Takeshi looked at the locked gate, and motioned for Tsuna to follow him.

A popular 'test of courage' the baseball club used to take part in before Hibari Kyouya had descended on their school like a force of nature was to sneak into school after hours, and go looking for the school's 'seven horrors.' These were nothing more than common school myths, like Hanako or the headless samurai. Takeshi and his fellows had never been able to do the test because their upperclassmen had not been willing to send them on a suicide mission to invade Hibari's precious school in clear defiance of the prefect's rules.

But the baseball club's secret was the chain-link fence that separated the baseball field from the neighborhood streets, weak and worn in one spot for the more lithe students to slip under. This was the spot Takeshi led Tsuna too, and together they slipped under and entered Namimori Junior High school grounds.

Most of Namichuu's students would never dare do something so blatantly against Hibari's rule. Some of the braver – read: reckless – Alphas would sometimes do something small to test the waters, like litter or mutter insults about the school under their breath, but they'd be found out and punished, and never step out of line again. No one would dare breach Hibari's rule about vacating school grounds after hours.

And yet here Sawada Tsunayoshi was, quietly following Takeshi into the darkened school building. His scent remained sweet and mild, unperturbed by where they were or what they were doing.

Takeshi led Tsuna up the stairs, up and up, until they'd reached the roof. The prefects on patrol never actually went inside the school, after all, let alone looked up; this was the best place for Takeshi to talk to Tsuna unhindered.

"What did you want to talk about?" Tsuna asked.

Takeshi looked at Tsuna, _really looked._ Everything he remembered about the boy, everything he'd learned just watching, everything he'd thought about concerning the Omega before him: that he'd scared Kurokawa with just a look after she'd talked to him with _that voice_ , after he'd been called out by Mochida and left a beaten and bruised Alpha in his wake, that the first floor courtyard was a mess and Murota swore the Beta Gokudera had been gunning for Tsuna and Tsuna alone.

Takeshi had been watching and seeing Tsuna for so long, and finally – now Tsuna could see him too.

 _Look at me._

"Did you know I broke my arm practicing?" Takeshi asked. Tsuna had to – it was common knowledge around their school. But it had to be done this way, because this was the only way Takeshi could be sure, could be really sure – that Tsuna could see him.

"...Yeah," Tsuna replied, voice tinged just slightly with the unsure.

Takeshi's smile was small and bitter – and genuine, for once in a long, long time.

Because if Takeshi could see the real Tsuna, then he could see the real Takeshi too.

"The baseball gods threw me away," he continued. "But baseball is the only thing I know, it's the only thing I'm good in. You know?"

Tsuna's amber eyes came alive then, the warm honey as sweet a trap as ever. Takeshi wondered if Mochida had seen this, before he'd gone down; if Gokudera had seen this, before the earth erupted around him.

"That's not true," Tsuna refuted. "Yamamoto-kun, it's true you have an amazing skill in baseball-"

" _Had_ ," Takeshi corrected quickly, smile lined dangerously with self-degradation. "I don't have anything anymore. I'm nothing without it."

Amber eyes widened, the dots connecting – and then they looked away, to the chain-link fence behind Takeshi's back and the edge of the rooftop behind it.

"You're different," Takeshi said, and Tsuna's eyes went back to him. The Omega took a step closer; Takeshi took a step back. "You understand that feeling, don't you? When you feel like you're nothing and it feels like the whole world is against you."

"Yamamoto-"

"I saw you with Kurokawa that day," Takeshi interrupted. Tsuna's mouth snapped closed. "When she said those- those things to you. They were unfair and untrue, and you were right, you know – to get angry. But it surprised me, and I didn't know why."

Tsuna didn't say anything.

"My mother was an Omega," Takeshi continued, voice going softer but no less vehement. "She was nice and sweet and people are always telling me she was the ideal Omega."

But she was dead dead dead _dead_ -

"I never saw her get angry. She never raised a hand to me, even when I acted like a brat," Takeshi said. "An ideal Omega. So soft, so kind, so sweet."

Still, Tsuna said nothing.

"Do you think, if she was like you – if she'd gotten angry when people said she was ideal because she could cook and clean and bear offspring, that that's the only thing she was good for, and it's fortunate she's just so good at that – if she had gotten angry enough to-"

" _Protect what's important to you."_

 _How one-sided._

"If she could have fought back like you, do you think she wouldn't have died?" Because his father had not been there, because Takeshi was just a child, because his mother had been there and she'd died _because she was weak_.

And so is Takeshi.

Tears leaked from his eyes, burning the corners and blurring his vision of Tsuna's vivid eyes. _Look at me- don't look at me- What does it matter?_ Takeshi thought, wild and desperate and sick. Sick of smiling when everything hurt, sick of pretending he didn't know his mother was murdered, sick of being the ideal Alpha son.

Ideals don't exist; only people do. And people were weak.

 _Look at me,_ Takeshi thought, blinking the tears out of his eyes. Tsuna was closer now, an arm's length away. His expression was a new one to Takeshi: concerned and terrified. On any other Omega, it would have been expected; on Sawada Tsunayoshi, it meant so much more.

Takeshi's smile returned. "You're finally looking at me," he murmured.

Takeshi leaned back against the railing; metal creaked and gave way, and Takeshi did not fight to regain balance as his body fell back to be embraced by the air.

 _Look at me_ , Takeshi thought. _And watch me die._

"YAMAMOTO!"

Blazing amber and warm honey enveloped him. Tsuna's hands, small and thin, grabbed fistfuls of Takeshi's shirt. Takeshi's eyes widened, the sharp intensity of sweetness in scent bringing him back to reality.

" _Tsuna-"_ Takeshi croaked out in horror.

Tsuna was not supposed to fall with him. _No no no no no-_

The sound of the wind rushing by his ears muffled the sound of glass breaking as a single bullet shot out from a fourth floor classroom. Tsuna's head was knocked back, but Takeshi didn't have enough time to understand it as suddenly the hands grabbing him let go just enough for Tsuna to position himself more fully over Takeshi.

" _Save Yamamoto with my dying will!"_

Fire filled Takeshi's vision, burning and bright and warm. Tsuna crawled over him, for some reason shirtless – and then he grabbed Yamamoto, one arm around his shoulders and the other under his knees.

 _Bridal carry-?!_ Takeshi thought in shock.

Tsuna's feet scraped the side of the building as he attempted to slow down their freefall descent. His face – amber eyes narrowed in concentration, burning orange flame atop his forehead – drew Takeshi's eyes.

"Shit, can't stop!" Tsuna growled, notable skid marks on the side of the school building left behind him. "Yamamoto, it's gonna be a rough landing! Hold on to me!"

The authoritative tone, the confidence with which he spoke – Tsuna was clearly determined to save Yamamoto, and more notably, was confident he would. So Takeshi used his good arm, wrapped it around Tsuna's neck and held on tight, eyes never leaving Tsuna's face.

Something green sprouted from the ground directly below him, beady yellow reptilian eyes peering up from a rounded surface, and Takeshi gripped the slim body next to his tight as they hit-

A trampoline?

Tsuna bounced off agilely, Takeshi still cradled in his arms, landing somewhat crouched meters away from the trampoline. Takeshi's feet brushed the grass of the ground floor, and besides a good jostling and windswept spiky hair, showed no damage.

The flame on Tsuna's face extinguished, drawing back and warming those familiar amber eyes once more. The slight boy shifted, faltering under Takeshi's weight, and they both crashed down much more ungracefully. Takeshi was half-sprawled over a Tsuna's small frame, and upon further contact, realized the boy wasn't just shirtless – he was stripped down to only fish-printed boxers.

Takeshi sat up, face hot and falling back onto his butt. Tsuna sat up, rubbing at his chest from where Takeshi had accidentally elbowed him in his rush to get off, but his eyes were reserved for the Alpha boy before him.

"Are you okay?" Tsuna asked, looking him over, the warm glow of concern once more in his eyes.

Takeshi was trembling from head to toe, his right arm was aggravated from the jostling earlier, and his mind was a mess.

"Tsuna," Takeshi managed out, unsmiling and _real_. "You're _amazing_."

Tsuna stared at him. Then, after a moment, leaned forward – and smacked Takeshi clear across the face.

"What," Tsuna ground out. "The hell were you thinking?"

"I couldn't play baseball anymore, so I thought I wanted to die," Takeshi responded promptly. "As long as you were looking at me, I could die happy."

"What?" Tsuna choked out. "Wha- _Why?_ No, wait, before that – what you were saying earlier, about being 'nothing without baseball'. What the hell was that! You're so much more than just baseball!"

The very idea that Takeshi seemed to think so little of himself clearly enraged the little brunet; Tsuna ended up slapping him again. Takeshi touched his smarting cheek in wonder.

"I don't know what happened with your mother," Tsuna continued on, this time quieter, but the look in his eyes – it was a heat so concentrated, Takeshi couldn't look away. "But do you think she'd really be happy, seeing you throw away the life she'd given you?"

" _Protect what's important to you."_

Yamamoto Keiko was an Omega, was a wife, was a mother. She was not a fighter. So one sunny day, faced with people so much stronger and so intent on hurting her – she did the only thing she could do: she died quietly. One whimper, one plea, one scream – if she'd done any of that, her young son out playing in the yard would enter the home and out of the view of their neighbors. It may be futile, it may be only for a few minutes more – but she could believe in those few moments, if it meant her child would live.

And so Yamamoto Keiko protected her son, the only way she could, and died.

 _Takeshi did not._

"I'm sorry," Takeshi said, staring into those amber eyes. He'd known, he'd always known – he'd just never accepted it, felt too scared and hurt and guilty to do so. _"I'm so sorry."_

Apologies spilled from his lips, matching the tears rolling down his cheeks. It was unclear just what he was apologzing for: to Tsuna, for nearly killing them both; to his mother, for thinking so little of her even though he should have known; to his father, for trying to leave him family-less; to the world in general, for his stupidity and selfishness. Maybe he was apologizing for none of it, or all of it.

But the words came, over and over. Honey-scented warmth wrapped around Takeshi once more, Tsuna enveloping him in his arms.

An Alpha like Yamamoto Takeshi can be strong, until he wasn't – but that was okay. Because an Omega like Sawada Tsunayoshi was only weak, until he wasn't – and could help catch Takeshi when he fell.

* * *

"Reborn – _Reborn_ , are you listening to me? I've had two people nearly _kill themselves_ on me within the last week! _This is crazy!_ And somehow your fault!"

 _Bang!_ "Shut up, dame-Tsuna. Just be glad you've gained a good Family member."

" _I am not going to be a mafia boss!"_

* * *

 **End Chapter 6**

* * *

 **A/N** : This chapter got surprisingly heavy. Whoops.

I left out some of the slapstick comedy, namely hitting Tsuna's random body parts with bullets to add special effects. It was a bit too wonky for the plot. (lmao)

 _Notes on Tsuna:_

-He went through huge character growth this chapter, but you'll see more of that next chapter when it switches back to his POV.

 _Notes on Yamamoto:_

-He's a huge tangle of issues, honestly. His mother's murder served as a traumatic moment for him given the brutal way she was killed, and his survivor's guilt burrowed deep and warped a lot of his thinking. It's why his mind kept going in circles: _look at me, she's dead, protect what's important, how one-sided._ He initially blamed his mother for dying, focusing on the 'inherent weakness' of Omega. This got dashed when he encountered Tsuna and Hana fighting in the stairwell, and then Tsuna continuously destroyed the idea of all Omega being weak. Hibari Sasako's words to him ("Protect what's important to you.") got all twisted up in his mind. Fortunately, Tsuna proved they were words one could live by.

- **"You must be stronger... so you can protect what's important to you."**

Hibari Sasako's words were not actually referring to Takeshi's father (as he initially believed, leading into the whole 'it doesn't matter how strong an Alpha is, Omega are weak and will die anyway' mentality). She was actually referencing Takeshi's mother, who had "died quietly" so that Takeshi had a chance to survive.

 _ **Please be kind and drop a review.**_


	7. What I've seen with your eyes!

**A/N:** Tsuna's new subordinates have no concept of social boundaries.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own _Katekyou Hitman Reborn._

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

* * *

" **If only you could see what I've seen with your eyes!"**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

"This tastes really delicious, Sawada-san!"

"Thank you," came Nana's light, tinkling laughter. Her chopsticks hovered just over her bowl, paused as she once again glanced around the table. Her cheerful expression did not waver but Tsuna knew his mother was confused. It was only natural, of course.

Tsuna had brought home an Alpha.

 _No_ , Tsuna thought, correcting his own thoughts as the fire wrapped a claw around his heart. He brought home _Yamamoto Takeshi_ , who just happened to be an Alpha.

It was the morning after; a glorious 10 hours after Yamamoto attempted to throw himself off the school roof. Tsuna had tossed and turned all night, unable to stop thinking about it, the memories playing on loop on the back of his eyelids.

Yamamoto, all brittle smiles and wild eyes-

Yamamoto, asking Tsuna-

 _(Why is she dead? Why is she dead?)_

Yamamoto, smiling, leaning back and then there was nothing but the Namimori night sky-

Tsuna knew terror; it was his most loathsome friend, a constant in his life from the moment his flames wrapped around his core and forced his eyes open to reality. Tsuna was terrified on a daily basis: from Reborn, to magic bullets, to strangers who eyed him speculatively on the street. There was no end to his fear, a feeling that was morbidly encouraged by his community who believed an Omega was better off fearing every dark corner than growing to overcome it.

It had been the first time Tsuna ever felt terror for _someone else,_ though.

There had been a similar occurrence, when Gokudera had nearly blown himself up 'testing' Tsuna; but that fear had been overpowered by the assurance that as soon as Tsuna put out the fuses, Gokudera would be perfectly safe. Gokudera had been in immediate physical danger, and so long as Tsuna nullified that danger, Gokudera would be whole and safe afterwards.

Yamamoto was far away from that school rooftop, but Tsuna couldn't stop himself from thinking that may not be enough.

Yamamoto Takeshi had always been idolized by their school; friendly, genuinely kind, with a refreshing amount of restraint and cheer. His natural charisma and physical prowess were hallmarks of his dynamic; the only thing that could be seen as a detraction from the otherwise perfect Alpha Yamamoto Takeshi were his poor grades, but it was common knowledge that his schoolwork suffered because of his devotion to baseball.

Yamamoto had escorted Tsuna to the roof of their school and attempted to throw himself off it.

Nothing about Yamamoto was dominating. He was courteous and amiable, all smiles when he knocked on the Sawada front door early this morning. It was as if last night had never happened, as if he hadn't spent nearly an hour sobbing into Tsuna's chest, a mass of trembling limbs and keening whimpers.

Yamamoto was a superb athlete, lithe form lined with muscle from his afterschool activities and influenced by his dynamic.

Tsuna didn't think he'd ever seen anyone so frail before.

It was hard to keep his eyes off Yamamoto. It wasn't some fear the other boy would disappear if he did; Tsuna knew – in that way of his, the same way he _knew_ how to fight Mochida and lie to Kusakabe – that Yamamoto would make no further attempts on his own life. It was just that the fragility Tsuna had seen behind Yamamoto's smiling mask had been fascinating.

It had been fascinating, and terrifying, and _beautiful_.

" _Mama,"_ Tsuna had said that morning, coming up behind his mother as she stared at the Alpha boy on her doorstep. _"He's my friend. Can he stay for breakfast?"_

His mother had allowed it. If this had been last year, if they had been the same Sawada Nana and Sawada Tsunayoshi they were last year – Tsuna didn't think she'd ever allow an Alpha into the home, unPresented or not. The Omega-rearing manuals she had stacked in her bookshelf had been adamant on not allowing Alphas easy access to Omega, especially without a platonic Alpha in the home to protect them. Betas were only tolerated because there was no inherently-dominating gene in their dynamic, but even then – Gokudera had been a nest of delinquent mannerisms and bruises. No one sane would have let either him or Yamamoto into their home, least of all a home with an unMated Omega.

And yet, his mother had helped tend to Gokudera's wounds. She'd allowed the silver-haired Beta to be alone with Tsuna in his room. And now this morning, she'd allowed an Alpha boy – unPresented or not didn't really matter – into her home and fed him breakfast.

There was no social connection between the Sawada family and the Yamamoto family. The only reason Tsuna even knew Yamamoto was the son of the owner of TakeSushi was because it's common knowledge at their school. ( _A back-up career,_ their teachers had noted of the Alpha. _Should baseball playing not pan out. Ideal Alpha material.)_ Sawada Nana had never spoken to either Yamamoto or his father personally.

Tsuna didn't want to question his mother's change of mindset. It was troublesome enough just dealing with his own.

Tsuna had not much cared for Alpha. It had been understated before Reborn's appearance; irritation and toleration colored most of his interactions with his Alpha counterparts, but even those interactions were brief and sparse. His mother had made a safe space for him, Hibari's reign of terror over their community dissuaded dominance displays from happening in public, and so the most Tsuna had to deal with was condescension on a creeping scale.

This did not mean Tsuna was left unaware of what an Alpha was capable of. During lessons on Dynamics, Tsuna would have it hammered home: Alphas dominate. Alphas have pheromones that can subdue Omega. Alphas can Demand. Alphas can Mark an Omega, can Claim Omega as if they were nothing more than things to be possessed.

(There was something about an Alpha's Claim, an Alpha's Mark, that really caused Tsuna's blood to boil.)

Tsuna had seen, first-hand, just what Alphas were like. He had four in his class, after all. Iwasaki and Murota were practically the classic archetypes, prideful and prone to rankling each other if left to their own devices for too long. Kurokawa was quieter but led the class with a harsh efficiency, prone to cutting remarks and didn't bother to soften her words if facing someone she thought less of. Yamamoto was the type of Alpha so popularized in shoujo manga, capable and kind with natural charisma and infectious goodwill.

Iwasaki and Murota were little better than wild dogs; Kurokawa held herself on a pedestal with the disposition of a regent and the flexibility of a stone column (breakable); Yamamoto's smile was _bullshit_.

They were young, though, and everything changed after they Presented – or so Tsuna had been told, sitting in a room with the other two Omegas of his year group for their own personalized Dynamics lesson. After they Presented, Alpahs would turn into capable, protective Mates that they as Omega would rely on. Alphas were meant to lead, strong enough to bear the burden of responsibility for their Omega mates and were not prone to overly-emotional reactions as an Omega was.

Society told Tsuna that an Alpha was dominant and strong. His school experience told Tsuna that an Alpha was egotistic and incapable of emoting much more than anger and arrogance.

Yamamoto Takeshi promptly took both these views and threw them off the roof along with him.

Tsuna wondered if Reborn had known, if that was why the baby-shaped hitman had pressured Tsuna into going along with Yamamoto's invite the other night. Tsuna had not wanted to; for one, he had had no intention of listening to an Alpha, and two, his body still ached from Hibari's assault just last week. If he had to endure round two should the demonic prefect find them on school grounds after hours, Tsuna would probably die.

But Reborn had been adamant. He hadn't ordered Tsuna to do anything – they were learning from each other quite well – but he'd certainly guilt-tripped Tsuna enough. And when that failed – _"Omega shouldn't be out alone after dark,"_ Tsuna had shot back at his tutor, voice dry – Reborn had then started making casually threatening remarks, such as wondering aloud if Tsuna needed additional lessons on world history and foreign languages, all while his gun stockpile grew around him. Tsuna had thought rather spitefully that Reborn may as well aim that AK-47 at his back and drop the pretenses.

Whatever Reborn's machinations may be, Tsuna had ended up on that rooftop. Reborn may have been the one to shoot the bullet that gave Tsuna the strength to actually save Yamamoto from his fall, but it was _Tsuna_ that had cradled Yamamoto in his arms afterwards as the taller boy broke apart.

Omega were not inherently submissive. Tsuna knew this, because he was an Omega, and he wouldn't even submit to someone that held a gun to his head.

It should have occurred to him that Alpha were not inherently dominant. Yamamoto, trembling in his arms, had no intention of domination.

It shouldn't have been as shocking to Tsuna as it was. After all, he'd met Hibari; the older boy had plainly stated he had no intention of dominating Omega either. Of course, he'd also said this while attempting to pummel Tsuna into the dirt, so maybe Tsuna just couldn't associate Hibari with anything _but_ domination.

But Yamamoto – Yamamoto wasn't like any other Alpha. _No_ , Tsuna thought, correcting himself, the burn around his chest warning him against the direction of his own thoughts. Yamamoto was just Yamamoto – Alpha had nothing to do with it.

That had been what Tsuna had learned, diving off the roof after the other boy. It was just like when Tsuna had become one with his flames – dynamic didn't matter. When Yamamoto fell back into the star-laden sky of Namimori, the fact that he was an Alpha didn't matter; the only thing that mattered was that Yamamoto Takeshi was _hurting so much so that he'd rather die._

So Tsuna did what he'd learned from watching Reborn – he adapted, Dynamic prejudices be damned.

"Yamamoto-kun," Tsuna began softly. Nana had risen to start cleaning the dishes, and despite her low humming, Tsuna was aware of the tension in her shoulders. Maybe his dislike of Alpha was inherited?

"You can just call me Takeshi," Yamamoto said brightly, smiling.

Tsuna took in the smile quietly. It wasn't as real as it'd been on that rooftop, but it was far better than the ones Yamamoto had been showing for most of the school year. With a little more time, it might even become genuine.

"O-Oh," Tsuna stuttered out. He could call Yamamoto so familiarly? Why was everyone he was getting to know these days jumping so many social barriers so quickly? "T-That's-"

"A little inappropriate," Nana interrupted, tone candid. "People might think you're betrothed."

An outdated tradition, to be sure, but not unheard of. Some parents of Omega children betrothed their offspring to others while young, thus ensuring a Mate for their child in the future. It had fallen out of favor as post-Presentation matchmaking became popular.

Tsuna's pheromones flared a bit at the insinuation of Yamamoto being his Mate, even as the more rational part of himself knew that Yamamoto had no intention of dominating him. His mother tensed, a slight startle in her dishwashing, but Yamamoto only cocked his head with a guileless smile and knowing eyes.

"That's silly of them," Yamamoto said amiably. "I'm never going to dominate you."

Tsuna relaxed. Yamamoto was harmlessly clueless and one hundred percent genuine. It was rather calming just being in his presence, if Tsuna were honest with himself.

Yamamoto was still smiling. "Oh, but you can dominate m-"

Reborn, who had been quietly and peacefully drinking his espresso throughout the whole awkward breakfast, shot a warning shot at Tsuna's feet. This startled Tsuna into yelping and jumping out of his seat, inadvertently cutting off whatever Yamamoto had just been about to say. Nana was already turned around, staring wide-eyed at Yamamoto for reasons Tsuna didn't understand, but he wasn't given any time to think on it as Reborn spoke.

"Gokudera's arrived," the hitman stated boredly.

"You had to shoot at me for that?" Tsuna screeched. "You couldn't just _tell_ me like a _normal person?"_

"I'm the world's number one hitman," Reborn retorted. "Does that seem like something a normal person would be?"

Tsuna threw his hands up in exasperation.

Yamamoto laughed. "What a funny baby!" the baseball player chortled, not at all chagrined by the way Nana was still staring at him in perplexed wonder. "Is that a game you're playing? Like cops and robbers?"

The doorbell rang at that moment. Nana came back to herself, tearing her gaze from Yamamoto and leaving the relative chaos of the kitchen.

"We're mafia," Reborn told Yamamoto frankly.

" _I'm not!"_ Tsuna protested and went ignored.

"I'm Reborn," Tsuna's baby-shaped terrorizer continued. "I'm training Tsuna to become the tenth boss of the Vongola family."

Yamamoto nodded in good-natured humor. "That's a good choice," he agreed, throwing Tsuna a smaller but more sincere smile. "I'd definitely follow if Tsuna was leading."

Reborn smiled. "That's good, because you're going to join the Vongola Family too," the hitman said.

"Don't arbitrarily involve normal people!" Tsuna interjected in rising horror.

Yamamoto laughed. "It sounds like a fun game!" the Alpha boy said, and then the expression on his face smoothed into something much more predatory. "If Tsuna's playing, I want in on it too."

Maybe Tsuna should rework his definition of 'normal'.

"TENTH!"

Tsuna's head whipped around so fast at the boisterous call, he may have gotten whiplash. He'd gotten completely distracted by Reborn's antics that he'd nearly forgotten what the hitman had first said.

How he could have forgotten something like Gokudera's newly-arrived presence was a mystery, one that was soon rectified as the silver-haired bomber skidded into the kitchen with all the eagerness of puppy and decorum of a devotee to their idol.

"Good morning, Tenth!" Gokudera greeted, at a much more acceptable volume as Nana entered the kitchen on his heels. The look in his eyes was _this_ side of fanatical.

"Gokudera-kun, good morning," Tsuna managed out, more from reflex than a sense of calm. He actually found the silver-haired boy's presence reassuring; that likely had something to do with the amount of Alphas in the room. With a Beta, the Alpha were at least slightly outnumbered. "Did you eat breakfast?"

"I had Cup Noodles," Gokudera reported to him happily.

Nana's expression was horrified. "Gokudera-kun, that's not a good breakfast!" she chided, motioning for the boy to sit at the table and moving back over to the stove, clearly intent on rectifying the situation herself.

Gokudera, simultaneously touched by his friend's/boss's mother's generosity, was halted from thanking her profusely when his eyes finally latched onto the new addition. Tsuna, with a sudden spike of dread, nearly groaned as six sticks of dynamite appeared in Gokudera's hands.

"Who is this?" Gokudera growled out, green eyes on Yamamoto.

To Tsuna's bemusement, Yamamoto seemed equally surprised. "Gokudera?" the baseball player uttered quietly. His eyes were tracking the bandages wrapped around Gokudera's arms, barely visible from under the sleeves of his uniform shirt and assortment of bracelets. Illogically, Yamamoto's expression was starting to brighten even more.

"This is the new subordinate, Yamamoto Takeshi," Reborn stated. "He joined the Family last night."

"Yamamoto's my friend, not a subordinate!" Tsuna interjected. He was once again ignored.

Gokudera launched forward, grabbing Yamamoto by the lapels of his shirt. "Listen here, you little shit," Gokudera snarled into the taller boy's face. "I don't accept you. As the Tenth's Right Hand-"

"Oh, this Mafia game has that too?" Yamamoto interrupted brightly. "Then I want to be Tsuna's right hand!"

"How dare you say his name so casually!" Gokudera yelled, shaking the boy. Tsuna wondered where the Beta boy got the energy to be so angry all the time. "And I'm the Right Hand, you bastard!"

"Well, he said we were friends," Yamamoto replied. "You can be the ear lobe, Gokudera."

" _I'LL KILL YOU!"_

"Gokudera-kun, no-!"

Tsuna wondered in despair if this was how his mornings would go from now on.

* * *

 _Six Years Ago_

Alpha surrogates were sworn as one of the best medical and psychological treatments an abused or otherwise damaged Omega could get. While Betas were seen as acceptable surrogates, it was generally believed they lacked the 'true ability' to satisfy the needs of an Omega; only an Alpha could Claim an Omega, only an Alpha could Mark an Omega, only an Alpha was capable of truly fulfilling the biological contract that required Omega to seek frequent physical contact.

Beta parents were thus presented with an issue when they produced Omega offspring: a lack of Alpha. Alpha parents of Omega children could Scent their offspring, fulfilling the biological obligations; Beta parents could not, leaving their Omega children vulnerable to the world at large.

Within the past decade, the medical community began to explore means to resolve the issue of high Omega fatality rates, in which it was believed Beta-raised Omega children tended to have shorter lifespans. Curiously, these statistics did not take in the social or cultural context of their populations, and thus did not account for things like how unClaimed Omega – usually raised by Beta parents – were subjected to greater levels of violence or suffered from domestic abuse at much higher rates.

Doctor Laurent, renown Omega specialist and purist, led the movement to promote the use of Alpha surrogates for victimized Omega. It was accepted by the medical community that Omega required physical contact to maintain health, and in light of the common practice of Mating Omega victims to their Alpha abusers in an effort to give the Omega a semblance of a normal life, Doctor Laurent did not have to push his agenda especially hard to get it accepted.

Alpha surrogates were initially started when an unMated Omega required an Alpha's presence to recover from some trauma. The traumas covered a wide spectrum, anything from death of their original Mate to drug abuse rehabilitation. As Omega go into Heat at least six times a year, Alpha surrogates provided a back-up solution should an Omega not have any other way.

Medical specialists allied with Omega purists promoted the use of Alpha surrogates in just about everything. By far, however, the biggest push-back was the suggestion Alpha surrogates could be used in place of Beta parents. Beta parents provided just enough for Omega children to grow to adulthood, these medical professionals had agreed – but they weren't enough to really allow Omega children to thrive.

But people cannot change dynamic, and so, the most natural solution was for Alphas to offer themselves as surrogates. While it was generally agreed upon Alphas were best for Omegas, heavy resistance came from Beta parents of Omega children.

In an effort to promote the Omega purists' vision and resolve the recurring issue of high fatality rates of Omega within their population, the government of Greece legalized the use of Alpha surrogates and institutionalized their use by requiring Beta parents to agree to an Alpha surrogate for their Omega children, or pay heavy fines. Only about 6% of Greeks were identified as Omega, and of that 6%, there were only 11% (about 74,000 individuals) Omega aged 15 and under. (Fifteen being the average age an Omega presented, rendering them no longer a child but a possible Mate.)

By the end of the following year, of the 74,000 Omega children forcibly matched with an Alpha surrogate, 92% of the children displayed a higher sensitivity to change in pheromones and a "general increase in appropriate Omega behavior." Their health was also in general good form, and when compared to Omega who lacked an Alpha in the home, ranked much higher.

As per usual, the inaccuracies of the study were ignored and swept under the rug. A Norwegian counter-movement occurring at the same time attempted to bring to light the defects: a lack of a base sample, no credible information on how the Greek study documented "Omega health" and what exactly "appropriate Omega behavior" entailed.

And then there was the 8%.

Of the 74,000 Omega children matched with an Alpha surrogate, 5,920 – _8%_ \- did not survive unscathed, or in some cases, survive at all. During the 1.5 year-length study of Alpha surrogates, 5,920 Alpha surrogates could not – as they argued in court – curb their natural instinct to claim unMarked Omega. Vulnerable Omega children fell under this umbrella; a majority of the Omega victims were between the ages of 12-15 years of age. Of the nearly six thousand Omega children, 352 died in the course of an Alpha's Claim. The remaining 5,568 Omega children suffered from varying degrees of sexual abuse, none of which involved a Mark. As set in their societal precedent, once the remaining 5,568 reached of age and Presented, they were Mated with their abusers if the courts had decided their their abusers had offered the proper repentance and could take responsibility for their Omega. If the Alpha surrogate/abuser could not match this criteria, then the Omega victims were matched with a different Alpha surrogate.

The 8% was swept viciously under the rug, smothered by the Omega purists and the study lauded for showing incredible improvement in Omega healthcare.

(In the following ten years of the conclusion of the study, another 1,204 Omega victims of the original Greek study had committed suicide.)

The use of Alpha surrogates slowly spread to other nations, meeting resistance but ultimately accepted – if not politically, then socially. Japan was one of the most resistant, unwilling to allow 'strangers' into their homes – Alpha or otherwise. Given the high fatality rates of Japanese Omega, however, and following the upheaval of a yakuza sect in Kyoto that unearthed a multi-national Omega sex trafficking ring, Alpha surrogates began to be pushed with more ferocity.

Japanese doctors began to fall in line.

When a young Omega boy had been brought into the Namimori ER one October night, Doctor Itou had taken one look at the Mark on the child's neck and knew he was a lost cause. (Any Alpha that had done something so cruel with absolutely no hesitation would definitely dominate the small, fragile thing laid out in a hospital bed.) Thus, when the young Sawada Tsunayoshi sat eating strawberry yogurt two days later, scratching irritably at his bandaged neck and large amber eyes following the nurses as they ambled about his room, Doctor Itou was forced to reconsider.

And so, Doctor Itou had found himself suggesting an Alpha surrogate for the doubtlessly traumatized child. Namimori was a small town, allowing Itou a considerable modicum of social flexibility when it came to his patients. Sawada Iemitsu had not taken his suggestion well, but the victim's mother looked as rattled as her son at times. She'd mentioned, in one of Tsunayoshi's check-ups, that the boy still couldn't remember what had happened to him that night.

Itou knew children were adaptable and quite fond of make-believe. If he thought the Omega child could get away with it, Itou would happily let the child pretend until the end of his days. But trauma did not work like that, and Itou knew young Tsunayoshi would have to face that reality someday – and it would be best for the boy if he had an Alpha to rely on.

So he'd suggested an Alpha surrogate, over and over, many times over the course of a year. Tsunayoshi had come in for annual check-ups, at the very least, and Namimori was a small place. It wasn't especially hard, and given the popularity of Alpha surrogates now permeating Japanese society, Itou didn't even have to keep needling Sawada Nana personally – her own neighbors were perfectly capable of doing it themselves.

Itou was unprepared, then, for Sawada Nana to call his office and cancel then 8 year old Tsunayoshi's annual appointment.

"Mrs. Sawada," Itou began, professional and exasperated. "I understand medical appointments can be a point of stress-" Tsunayoshi always looked at Itou like the doctor was a wolf in disguise, all wide amber eyes and posture like a coiled spring ready to launch; it just made Itou more persistent that the child get an Alpha surrogate as soon as possible. "-but they are mandatory for Omega children. And with Tsuayoshi-kun's history-"

"Oh, I know they're mandatory!" Sawada Nana's voice came cheerfully through the receiver. "My husband has arranged a different doctor for Tsu-kun!"

Itou frowned. "I have a specialized doctorate in Omega care, Mrs. Sawada- the only one in Namimori. While it is your right to take your child to whichever doctor you feel appropriate, I am the best in my field in Namimori," he pointed out diplomatically. Just when he thought the woman would finally see reason.

"That sounds nice, Itou-sensei," Mrs. Sawada giggled. "Thank you for understanding. Have a nice day!" And then she hung up.

Itou had been so disgruntled by the interaction, he'd ended up complaining not only to his fellow hospital staff, but also at his usual bar after his shift.

Word spread, however slowly, that Sawada Nana was ignoring a doctor's suggestion to find an Alpha surrogate for her child, but also that she was apparently taking her son to some unknown clinician. This news had been frowned upon heavily among the Sawada's immediate community, and an already-ostracized Tsunayoshi was subjected to another layer of subjugation because of it.

(Pity had a way of blinding; willful ignorance was just hateful. Combined, no one was able to acknowledge that 8-year-old Tsuna was so much more capable than ever, and much healthier in comparison to his Omega peers. But instead of fostering a thirst for knowledge, he was never acknowledged in class and excluded from most activities; instead of involving him in community projects and building a sense of teamwork and cooperation, he was left to play alone in the park or isolated at home.

And so, Tsuna allowed his grades to fail – because what did it matter, if he was never going to be able go to university? Tsuna ignored school activities and clubs, because what's the point in joining if he'd just be a glorified decoration at worst, a trophy cheerleader at best?)

Doctor Itou continued in his work as usual, not really keeping up with the chaos Namimori kept so well-hidden. The hospital was in a frenzy nearly every day nowadays, as more and more beaten bodies of yakuza members were dropped at their doors. The police force was out in force, trying to find out the source of the the sudden crackdown on crime, so eerily reminiscent of Hibari Sasako's reign of terror in Namimori's school system.

The answer came to Doctor Itou one evening. Or, more accurately, strolled straight into his office, face and limbs adorned in a variety of cute animal-printed band-aids, a local elementary school's sailor-styled uniform stained with dirt and suspicious red splatter.

Doctor Itou knew those eyes, though, and realized with sudden, horrifying clarity that he was matching eyes with Hibari Sasako's Alpha spawn.

" _Herbivore,"_ the child growled out, and no voice that had so clearly not yet entered puberty should sound that frightening. "You will tell me what I want to know, or I will bite you to death."

Doctor Itou's automatic reaction was to say 'no,' a professional response when people started asking for confidential information they were not privy to. But then a tonfa impaled the wall behind him, the Hibari child on his desk within the blink of an eye, snarling down at him.

Itou agreed hastily.

And so, Itou became witness to the first tides of Hibari Kyouya's bloody usurping of power within Namimori.

Why the Alpha child had wanted Sawada Tsunayoshi's personal medical history was a mystery to him.

* * *

"The answer is...t-three?" Tsuna stuttered out unsurely, eyes on the math problem he had sketched out.

"Wrong," Reborn said, and then his tiny hands were pushing down on a lever- _oh god, was that a detonator?!_

 _ **BOOM!**_

Exploded glass rained over the Sawada residence, a small plume of smoke enveloping Tsuna's room before being swiftly carried out by a timely breeze. Tsuna, bruised and scratched, peeked out from behind the remnants of the small table he'd been using as a desk before the explosion.

"In what world does a tutor use bombs when their student makes a mistake?!" Tsuna demanded in a strangled voice. It was only Wednesday and he'd have to get his windows replaced. _Again_.

"This one," Reborn replied easily. "And this is part of an experiment. Gokudera gets perfect scores on all of his schoolwork. Gokudera uses bombs. Perhaps there is a connection."

"Don't make up excuses!" Tsuna snapped back.

The week was only halfway over, and Tsuna was dead tired. If he thought last week was exciting, he was unprepared for the chaos of _this_ week. The only good thing was that Hibari had yet to show up, which meant that the DC chairman either thought he wasn't worth pursuing – highly possible – or he was planning to attack later.

Still, Tsuna hadn't been able to dwell on his inevitable tonfa-related death, as the new additions to his previously nonexistent social circle made themselves known. Gokudera often cut class, but turned up for the enitre school day in order to glare daggers into Yamamoto's head. Yamamoto's interactions with Tsuna would have slid under the radar, as he was naturally very friendly, except he now insisted on calling the Omega 'Tsuna' and spent any and all of his free time in Tsuna's company.

Tsuna had tried very hard to ignore the reaction of their classmates. Fortunately, it was hard to discern their reaction because Gokudera and Yamamoto got along as well as gas and lit match.

Tsuna managed to escape school without too much hassle, Gokudera acting as a delightful barrier between Tsuna and the greater community as they walked home, Yamamoto having run off to baseball practice.

Tsuna almost relished going back home to Reborn's hellish tutoring, because at least Tsuna seemed normal when compared to a pint-sized death machine.

Tsuna picked broken glass out of his hair. Maybe next time, he'd ask Gokudera if he wanted to do homework together. _Misery loves company,_ Tsuna thought absently, eyes trailing over the disaster area of his room and looking out the (no longer existent) windows with a sense of resignation.

A tiny child in a cow-print onesie grinned back at him, pistol aimed in their direction.

"It finally happened," Tsuna choked out. "I've finally gone insane."

"I'll review what we did now," Reborn stated, black eyes on Tsuna's math work and completely ignoring his student's impending breakdown.

"Reborn, I'm hallucinating," Tsuna replied blankly. "Probably because you're always kicking me in the head."

"DIE, REBORN!" the cow-patterned hallucination crowed out, pulling the trigger with victorious grin. Round eyes grew even wider at the empty clicking, and the child flailed his arm wildly as if bullets would appear if he only moved.

The tree's branch, already weak from the numerous explosions at the Sawada homestead, creaked in warning before finally snapping. The child fell to the ground with a high shriek, Tsuna jumping up and moving to where his windows were supposed to be in order to look down.

 _At least he's okay,_ Tsuna thought, watching the cow-child hallucination rise up onto his tiny feet.

"Dame-Tsuna, remember this formula," Reborn continued on.

 _And he's still ignoring it!_ Tsuna sighed, turning around to eye his tutor apprehensively. The doorbell rang ominously fom downstairs.

"Did a kid in an animal onesie just attempt to shoot you?" Tsuna asked, aware that it was resignation in his voice. This week was just _too much._

"Use this formula to solve the problem," Reborn pretended not to hear him.

Before Tsuna could throw window debris at his demon tutor, his bedroom door slammed open and a blur of cow-print barreled inside.

"Long time no see, Reborn!" Tsuna's former hallucination yelled. Tsuna was struck by a sharp scent, barely discernible if not for Tsuna's constantly heightened senses. _Alpha_ , Tsuna recognized, eyeing the cow-printed child. "It is I, Lambo Bovino, hitman of the Bovino famiglia! I'm five years old, from Italy, and my favorite foods are grapes and candy!"

"..." Tsuna stared.

"You have thirty seconds to solve number 3, dame-Tsuna," Reborn chimed in boredly. He leaned on the detonator threateningly.

"Stop destroying my room, Reborn!" Tsuna cried out, grabbing the work paper. His favorite cotton blanket was already singed from the last blast!

 _Sniffle_. "...To~ Le~ Rate~!" Tsuna glanced over, heart twisting a bit at the sight of the tears brimming in the child's eyes. "The answer... is four?" Tsuna tried again.

"Correct," Reborn replied, leaning away from the detonator.

"Don't ignore me!" Lambo screamed, charging forward.

Tsuna couldn't stop him in time. Reborn lashed out, a black blur of movement that sent Lambo sailing across the room and smacking into the bedroom wall. Tsuna winced in sympathy, remembering his first meeting alone with Reborn.

"R-Reborn, you shouldn't hit kids," Tsuna spoke up on Lambo's behalf. It was painfully obvious that Lambo really was just a child, unlike whatever Reborn was. The little Bovino scrambled back up, if a bit unsteady, fat tears rolling down his cheeks as he whimpered out another _"tolerate"_ drawl.

"The Bovino famiglia are a rather small mafia group," Reborn said. "I don't associate with those who rank lower."

 _You egotistical maniac!_ Tsuna eyed his tutor in horror.

"Reborn, you jerk!" Lambo cried out. "How dare you say that! This time I have a lot of weapons I borrowed from the Boss!"

Tsuna inched forward as Lambo began to- dig into his afro? Tsuna just didn't understand mafiosi.

"Lambo, no fighting in the house," Tsuna began. "Here, why don't you calm down? I'll give you some candy."

Tsuna felt more than saw the way Reborn turned to regard him. The flames coiled around his heart stilled his movements, his Intuition filling in the gaps: _Omega are always good with children._

Lambo, who had paused at the word 'candy', was now eyeing Tsuna warily. "Your eyes are weird," the child told him frankly.

Reborn tsk'd under his breath.

Lambo's attention snapped back to his target. "Don't mock the great Lambo-sama!" the child snapped, and then pulled out a purple- _is that a bazooka?!_

"Please tell me that's a toy," Tsuna whimpered.

" _Ta-da!_ The 10 Year Bazooka!" Lambo crowed out in triumph. "Those who are shot with this switch places with their self 10 years in the future, for five minutes!"

"How did you fit that into your hair?" Tsuna marveled.

Then Lambo aimed the bazooka at himself.

" _Three people, Reborn!"_ Tsuna screeched, jumping forward. He was too late, though; a _bang!_ and then the pink smoke exploded and obscured little Lambo from view.

The first thing Tsuna registered was the scent: sharp like the smell of industrial wiring, and the tantalizing bitterness of red wine. And then Tsuna found his hands – from where he'd attempted to reach out and grab Lambo – resting on a firm chest covered in a silky, cow-printed shirt.

The smoke cleared, and Tsuna looked up into drooping green eyes that inexplicably softened as they stared back into Tsuna. Hands came to rest on Tsuna's waist, gentle and well-mannered.

 _Alpha_ , Tsuna's instincts recognized.

Tsuna's hands twisted into the cow-printed fabric, lifting and bodily throwing the other male away from him and into the closest wall. The Alpha teen hit the wall with a resounding smack and small groan, rolling onto Tsuna's bed. After a moment, he sat up – completely unruffled by the rough treatment, one green eye closed in what could only be described as a _lazy_ expression.

" _Tsuna-nii,"_ the teen whined, a keening noise that had no business coming from the stranger. "You didn't have to throw me!"

The teen pouted, eyes roving up and down the boy. Only the fact that he wasn't moving caused Tsuna to halt his own attack. Aside from the sharp scent of the other boy, nothing about him was particularly dominating.

"I'm here because of the bazooka," the teen said, casually straightening out his shirt, answering an unvoiced question. "It's the 10 year bazooka. I was brought back here from ten years in the future, my younger self was sent 10 years forward."

Tsuna understood what the child Lambo had said, in his zealous description of his own weapon. He just hadn't expected it to be the truth. _The mafia are capable of time travel,_ Tsuna realized in horror.

"What a funny face you're making, Tsuna-nii," teen Lambo giggled.

"You- Why do you keep calling me that?" Tsuna squeaked out.

Lambo cocked his head. Tsuna, for a horrifying moment, thought it was _cute_.

"Oh, I should thank you," Lambo said, springing back up onto his feet. "For taking care of me since ten years ago!"

 _Since ten years ago._ Tsuna stared at him, then swiveled his head to pin Reborn – who had been watching the whole scene unfold with vague amusement – with an accusatory glare. "This is all your fault," Tsuna bit out.

Reborn nodded in mock-solemnity. "A single father at 14," the baby hitman agreed. "I have failed you as a tutor."

"Wha- _No!"_ Tsuna screeched. "It's your fault I'm surrounded by mafiosi!"

Lambo was now looking at Reborn, a surly look on his young face. "That's 'cause you're the Vongola Tenth, Tsuna-nii," he stated.

Reborn looked decidedly pleased at the confirmation.

Lambo was less so, staring into Reborn's eyes. Tsuna couldn't quite place the expression on the teen's face: there was a healthy dose of fear (Tsuna understood that), but there was something else to – something sad, or perhaps _disappointed_. Tsuna guessed Lambo's poor relationship with Reborn never got better.

"The 10th boss of the Vongola famiglia, Sawada Tsunayoshi," Lambo said again, tearing his eyes away from Reborn and back onto Tsuna. His previous expression melted away, replaced once more by that soft look in his eyes. Tsuna hadn't known anyone capable of making such a soft expression, his heart suddenly harshly beating in his chest.

"No matter what, you will always be our boss, Tsuna-nii," Lambo declared. Tsuna watched, frozen into place, as the teen got down onto one knee, gently grasping Tsuna's right hand and bringing it to his lips, placing a soft kiss to his ring finger.

His flames coiled around his heart, glowing in contentment.

Lambo was smiling up at him. Tsuna was struck by a vision of green flames and was taken aback by the warmth that flooded into him. "So young, and yet your flames still repond," Lambo murmured. "As expected of Tsuna-nii."

Lambo rose from the floor, still smiling, but took a step back as Tsuna tried to regain himself. _What the hell was that?_ Tsuna wondered, and to his surprise – he was trembling. But not from fear, no – it was as if his body was alight, too pleased to be still.

"Oh, so it's only June?" Lambo mused, eyes on the calender pinned to the wall that hadn't suffered from any explosions or bodies thrown against it. The teen looked thoughtful. "So you still have a little over a year..."

Tsuna couldn't make heads or tails of what the teen was saying, still wrapped in the throes of whatever was going on with his Flames. Reborn was looking between them, seemingly calm, but Tsuna knew – just _knew_ – that the baby hitman was bemused by teen Lambo's attitude as well.

"Tsuna-nii."

Tsuna's head snapped up, taking in Lambo's serious expression. "Y-Yeah?"

"We only have one and a half minutes more, so while I'm still here, let me apologize. And this still counts! Even if it's ten years too early!" Lambo said hurriedly, serious demeanor falling away as he nervously wrung his hands together. He looked like a little kid about to get reprimanded, Tsuna observed absently.

"Okay, so first – it's not my fault the east wing is gone. That was totally Lawn-head's fault!" Lambo began. "He said he wanted to do, uh, 'an EXTREME sports day' and when Octopus-head told him no, Lawn-head thought he could 'extremely show him an example' and, so, the east wing is gone now."

"..." Tsuna said.

"I was trying to stop him!" Lambo continued on frantically. "But then he punched holes all along the walls again, and that damn Pineapple told us that that was the support base for the wing only _after_ the fact, and stupid Gokudera didn't help at all because when he tried to stop Lawn-head, he thought dynamite would solve his problem, and you're always telling him dynamite doesn't solve all the problems but he _never listens_ , Tsuna-nii! It's always dynamite this, dynamite that, 'Lambo if you get less than 100 percent on your test I'll make you swallow dynamite!'"

Tsuna cantered a look over at Reborn. _Maybe I should keep Gokudera way from him,_ Tsuna thought.

"And so Haru-nee started freaking out and then tried to ask that damn Pineapple to cast an illusion of the east wing until we finished reconstructing it, but the stupid Pineapple said you can always see through his illusions and disappeared," Lambo said. "I don't know why we keep him around, Tsuna-nii, all he does is laugh at our misery and eat all of our chocolate."

Tsuna nodded with a solemn look. Inwardly, he was collapsing. _When?_ Tsuna wondered in despair. _When does a magic pineapple appear in my life?!_

"Fifteen seconds left," Lambo mused. "Okay, Tsuna-nii – please remember to always eat ice cream with me on Fridays! Those are our days!"

Tsuna nodded like a broken marionette.

Lambo turned a harsh look onto Reborn. "And stupid Reborn," he enunciated clearly, and this time – Tsuna could see the sparks of green lightning that flickered over the teen's horns. _"Wake the fuck up already."_

Pink smoke exploded into being, obscuring Lambo's figure once more.

* * *

 **End Chapter 7**

* * *

 **A/N** : Lambo, _language_. My god.

-Classmates reaction will be more detailed next chapter. As expected, there be waves.

-Yes, Hibari is always up to something. He's _Hibari_.

 _Notes on Tsuna:_

-He's currently working through his own dislike of Alphas. Yamamoto helps, and now he has Lambo - so that's two Alpha who become dependent on him.

 _Notes on Nana:_

-Much like her husband, she will make sense eventually too. :)

Honestly, I don't understand my own update speed. Why is it so fast for this story? I don't know. My blood is coffee at this point.

 _ **Please be kind and drop a review~**_


	8. Remember the Spider

**A/N:** Thank you so much for your reviews! :)

 **Chapter Summary** : Reborn has plans. These plans involve Tsuna but don't actually account for him, which is too bad - mostly for Reborn.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own _Katekyou Hitman Reborn_.

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

* * *

" **Remember the spider that lived outside your window?**

 **Orange body, green legs.**

 **Watched her build a web all summer, then one day there's a big egg in it.**

 **The egg hatched...**

 **And a hundred baby spiders came out...**

 **And they ate her."**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

Kurokawa Hana understood how the world worked.

Or, at the very least, she understood how Namimori worked. Children went to school on time, traffic was worse between the times of 4 to 6PM, and the whole town operated under the assumption that their every transgression would surely warrant the wrath of a certain demonic prefect.

There existed a specific kind of logic to Namimori, a unique set of unsaid rules that every citizen learned to abide by – either through integration or tonfa-related measures. The laws of the national government were observed, of course, but in Namimori – the social norms that tended to pervade most of Japan fell a little short. Hana had been raised in this town, and more importantly, tended to share the same learning environment as Namimori's monster – so she was acclimated to the oddity.

The world operated under several simple principles. Among the social interactions between Dynamics, it was clear Alphas came out on top. Hana knew this worked in her favor - her greatest competition was therefore her male counterparts, and she outstripped them within the realms of knowledge and maturity by _leagues_. She would never be able to compete with Hibari; any person who could not only dominate a school but _an entire town_ , using various means up to and including violence and fiscal management, was not someone Hana would ever be able to defeat. But that was just one of the many realities of Namimori.

When it came to her peers, however, Hana had felt relatively comfortable in her position. In her own immediate class, she was most often looked to for advice and direction. Not that Hana saw any problems with a Beta running the classroom; Kyoko was far better than Murota or Yamamoto, after all, and Hana trusted her friend with just about everything. Alphas were looked to to lead, though, and for the most part – Namimori Junior High followed their world's instinctive natures: Hana lead the classroom, Yamamoto lead the baseball club, Hibari lead the school (and town).

This was just how the world worked. Alphas lead; Betas help where they can; Omega follow. As far back as Hana could remember, she'd been taught these simple facts, and for most of her life, they'd been proven true. Hana always saw Alphas in positions of leadership, surrounded by Betas who could be relied on to competently do their jobs. Omega were there, too, quiet and gentle behind the scenes; tending to the home or their families, never doing anything of real interest to Hana, which was why it had been so easy to write them off.

Even when she had finally started her first year in junior high, it had been nothing different. Still the same idiotic monkey peers she was always surrounded by, still the same Kyoko with her bright smile, still the same quiet and shy Omega that stayed just in the periphery of Hana's vision.

After being privy to the sideshow that was Hibari's reign of terror, one would think Hana would not be surprised by the strangeness that was Namimori.

And yet, nothing had prepared her for Sawada Tsunayoshi.

Her first impression of Sawada had been: _Omega_. That's it, no fanfare, no special feelings – he had been quiet and refusing to make eye contact for most of the time they spent in class, just as any other Omega. He never talked much to his classmates, shying away even from his Beta peers. He had been renown for his ditziness in elementary school and the reputation followed him as they grew. Clumsy, air-headed Sawada Tsunayoshi, with his too-large amber eyes and thin frame. Hana always thought a well-timed breeze could have carried him away.

Sometimes, Hana wished she could have that ignorance back.

Talking to her male Alpha counterparts always gave her a sense of hives; their rampant stupidity may be contagious, and someone had to be able to manage the classroom before one of Iwasaki's and Murota's brawls interrupted their productive lessons. Some of her irritation with her Alpha peers had attached to males in general, including Sawada. She was mostly annoyed he could sit on the sidelines and avoid them altogether, while she was constantly expected to reign those idiots in.

But such was the life of an Alpha, and such was the life of an Omega.

Hana would manage and lead and mediate. Sawada would sit quietly on his little seat cushion and avoid his classmates as a whole. Once upon a time, Hana had thought that avoidance the result of a timid personality.

She'd learned her lesson.

"Um, Yamamoto-kun..." Ikeda started hesitantly. She was standing next to Hana's desk, a subconscious move seeking encouragement from her Alpha peer. She was likely hoping to get some support from the Alpha girl, not realzing that Hana refused to even breach the sheer _'what the fuck'-ness_ going on on the other side of the classroom.

Yamamoto perked up, head turned ever so slightly to gift the Beta girl – and the multitude of his classmates who were also eyeing him in bewilderment– with a bright smile. Hana could practically see her classmates be momentarily blinded by the sheer dazzling quality of the Alpha boy's grin.

"Yeah?" Yamamoto prompted kindly, when Ikeda remained quiet as she attempted to blink the stars out of her eyes.

"W-Well," Ikeda stuttered and faltered, then glanced at Hana for support. Hana tensed, reluctantly drawing her gaze away from where she had vehemently lodged it in the opposite direction of Yamamoto, instead re-focusing on what had her insipid classmates gawking for a week now.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, seated on his customary orange seat cushion, doing a damnable impression of someone not at all noticing the ruckus he was causing. Just looking at him made Hana want to go home and sleep for the next few months, vainly hoping the world returned to the state it was in before she'd found herself on the end of the scariest gaze any human being had ever turned on her before, and that included Hibari's own steel-eyed concentrated madness.

Gokudera Hayato had also returned, miraculously not skipping a single class. Of course, that was only because he felt the need to be present and make passing threats at Yamamoto, but only in-between _overtly fawning over Sawada_. A Beta openly fawning over an Omega was noteworthy in its own right, but Gokudera's interactions with their class's resident Omega was unusual in a variety of ways; their homeroom teacher had looked like he was having a seizure when Gokudera had strode into class Wednesday morning and courteously greeted Sawada with fanatical devotion.

Even now, Gokudera was sitting beside the object of his adoration, having pulled up a nearby chair to Sawada's desk and scribbling something into the Omega's notebook, chattering a mile-a-minute with a thousand-watt smile. It was _terrifying_.

Still, the class could have (naively, ignorantly) shrugged it off as a foreigner thing. Gokudera was Italian, after all, and perhaps that was just how they socialized with Omega in Italy. (It wasn't, Hana knew – it really, really wasn't. The objectification of Omega was a universal thing.) Their class could make up a thousand and one excuses so as to not upset the status quo.

But then Yamamoto Takeshi had went and crushed that hope, as cheerfully as he did just about anything. He sat on Sawada's other side, and though his eyes were currently on Ikeda with palpable friendliness, they'd previously been on Sawada with the same kind of creepy devotion Gokudera exuded with every pore of his being.

It was so indescribably creepy that no one had been able to work up the courage to say anything about it all week. Everyone _talked_ about it, of course, once the weird trio were out of ear and eye-shot; Hana knew their teachers were already devising plans to break up the strange _whatever_ the three had going on – Inoue-sensei had been horrified at how illicit it all seemed – and their classmates gossiped about it as soon as they felt safe to do so.

No one had approached any of the three directly. Murota refused to even look in Gokudera's direction, Iwasaki would obviously rather curl up under his desk in the fetal position than confront Yamamoto, and no one had been able to corner Sawada alone. Either Yamamoto or Gokudera were always around him, usually together except when Yamamoto had to leave for baseball club activities. Gokudera was attached to Sawada at the hip, and no amount of teacher-given orders or scheduled classroom duties separated them. Gokudera even threatened to rearrange Nezu-sensei's facial structure with his fist when the Maths teacher tried to force the silver-haired boy away from Sawada.

Through it all, Sawada remained quiet and unobtrusive, seemingly not noticing the reaction his two new attachments were getting. Their classmates attributed it to Sawada's oblivious nature and exhausting denseness; Hana knew it was just Sawada's weirdness finally infecting the rest of the world.

"Why don't you two give some Sawada some breathing room?" Hana suggested dryly, hoping her tone would be enough to cover the thin trill of fear shooting into her heart at the action of addressing Sawada, even indirectly.

Yamamoto looked at her questioningly, friendly smile still on his lips. Hana easily imagined him making that same face while committing a murder, and then tried to immediately forget thinking that.

Yamamoto turned to Sawada, smile dropping and eyes turning so warm that it became obvious those same dark eyes had been lacking when looking at her. _Creepiness factor just shot up another hundred points,_ Hana thought.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you, Tsuna," Yamamoto apologized. The use of the Omega boy's first name had the entire class flinching.

Sawada, who had finally torn his gaze away from whatever incomprehensible things Gokudera had been writing in his notebook, locked amber eyes somewhere in the vicinity of Yamamoto's chin. "You're not bothering me," he replied shyly.

The absurdity of it all only became so much more readily apparent when Sawada did _that_. When he acted like the every-man's-Omega, playing into a stereotype most of his classmates subconsciously pushed him under – _that_ was when he stood out as something not-quite-right. The way he acted, the words he spoke; it was as if he were acting out a part he had no particular interest in playing. It was jarring, especially when juxtaposed with both Yamamoto and Gokudera – who played so heavily against their assumed roles that Hana was sometimes surprised neither of them started showing Omega traits.

"You bother the fuck outta me," Gokudera bit out, glaring at Yamamoto. Predictably, Yamamoto laughed that off.

And just like that, the three were once again absorbed into their own little Sawada-centered world. Hana almost envied them, except that implied she wanted to be part of it, and she absolutely refused to join in that madness.

Ikeda looked ready to speak up again, but Kyoko entered the classroom and blessedly distracted the class for a moment. Hana had never been so grateful for her best friend, especially as the mild-mannered Beta girl swept to Hana's side and just looked innocently confused by the lingering tension in the air.

"Kyoko-chan," Kakei crooned in relief. "Please, _please_ do something about _that_."

The 'that' was obvious. Hana's head swiveled to pin Kakei with a glower, silently demanding why the girl would dare try to pressure their class's only saving grace into a dangerous situation.

Kyoko was still smiling, glancing between Kakei's mortified expression and the Sawada-bubble. "What's wrong?" Kyoko asked after a moment, clearly finding nothing wrong with Yamamoto and Gokudera hovering around Sawada.

Hana, not for the first time, wished she lived in the dream world Kyoko apparently traversed through on a daily basis.

"Oh, I brought sushi for lunch today," Yamamoto's voice could be heard clearly. "Dad made a lot, so let's share, Tsuna, Gokudera."

Iwasaki was choking on air, and Kawamura was openly gasping.

"Thank you, Yamamoto," Sawada replied, voice soft.

Hana chanced a look over. Sawada's head was tilted just so, brunet strands of hair sliding out of amber eyes as they momentarily matched Hana's gaze.

Hana turned away hurriedly.

She knew, even if she couldn't see it – that bastard was smiling.

* * *

Tsuna hadn't meant to start a monumental shift in the social power structure of Namimori Junior High. He'd just wanted to be with his two new friends in a genuine and open way; refusing to acknowledge their new relationships to him insulted them, and Tsuna did not want to hurt them by pretending it to be anything else.

Gokudera was just eager and honest, and sometimes that translated into acting belligerently – such as when he threatened various teachers when they dared approach him about his inappropriate conduct, or when certain Alpha classmates tried to say something before Gokudera turned furious green eyes on them, shutting them up instantly.

Yamamoto was affable as always, only his customary geniality seemed like a cheap cop-out when compared to the way he interacted with Tsuna. It was as if the greater community outside of Tsuna was only worthy of a shallow imitation of the sheer depths in Yamamoto, while Tsuna got to enjoy an abundance of warmth whenever Yamamoto so much as looked at him.

Tsuna found it all quite humbling. Gokudera was always so open with him, calling out to him regardless of propriety, talking about mafia and family and UMA. (Most of it was incomprehensible to Tsuna, but he enjoyed the way Gokudera's face seemed to light up when he talked.) Yamamoto treated Tsuna as an undisputed equal, grinning brightly whenever Tsuna met his eyes.

Tsuna knew this drastic change in their social power play would affect his class, but he hadn't expected it to be such a spectacle that it eventually shocked _the whole school._ He really should have known, though; Gokudera and Yamamoto were many things, but 'subtle' wasn't the first thing that came to mind for either of them.

This was how Tsuna found himself in the Principal's office, looking at the Beta man's desk littered with paperwork. Nezu-sensei was standing nearby, arms crossed and displeased expression dominating his face. The Maths teacher was the reason Tsuna was even in here; the man had apparently reported straight to the Principal about whatever it was that had upset him about Tsuna. Of course, it was obvious what Nezu-sensei was upset about.

"I've heard some troubling things recently, Sawada-kun," Principal Itobe started. "And I want you to know that Namichuu is a safe space."

Tsuna, whose tonfa-shaped bruises had only recently healed, valiantly did not snort at the lie.

"If Gokudera-kun or Yamamoto-kun have been pressuring you," Principal Itobe continued. "It would be in your best interest to tell us so we can help you. I know these things can be scary for a young Omega like you-"

Tsuna felt a familiar flare of irritation at the patronizing tone, his pheromones following suit – but this only seemed to confirm the Principal's suspicions. "Sawada-kun, if you are being pressured into doing indecent things, there are ways we can help you!" the older man continued on.

There was a suspicious small shadow just out of sight near the windowsill, and from the pinprick at the back of his neck courtesy of his intuition, Tsuna didn't have to guess who it was. _He really does nothing but follow me around all day,_ Tsuna mused of his demon tutor. Tsuna's eyes moved from the paperwork up to the Principal's necktie. It was an ugly thing, some garish pattern in bold burgundy. Really, the necktie was the most indecent thing Tsuna had been forced to confront recently.

"There's no issue, Principal Itobe," Tsuna responded quietly. His voice was steady, almost bored-sounding, but Tsuna couldn't quite help that; anything less and they'd probably think he was covering up whatever 'indiscretions' they were imagining.

It said quite a lot about how they viewed the world. A world where an Alpha like Yamamoto and a Beta like Gokudera became friends with an Omega like Tsuna – _surely there must be something else! They couldn't just be friends!_ Of course, there actually _was_ something else behind the scenes, but Tsuna doubted 'mafia business' was the first thing that came to mind for his teachers.

"It's _inappropriate_ ," Nezu-sensei spoke up, a sneer dominating his face. "Surely even _someone like you_ understands what it seems like when you have an Alpha hanging all over you."

Tsuna was quiet for a moment. He understood, of course, what Nezu was implying; an Omega should not act so friendly with an Alpha. It gave the impression that the Omega was promiscuous, which was practically a death nail.

Tsuna thought about what that meant for him personally. For one, he didn't much care about what his community thought about him in that regard; they already had a low opinion of him, given his lack of an Alpha surrogate and Beta-only home. Second, whatever effect this had on his chances in Mate prospects in the future, he couldn't even care less about; no Mate was best Mate, in Tsuna's (never to be spoken) opinion.

The only real stickler was how this affected Yamamoto. Tsuna made a mental note to talk to the other boy about it. Tsuna rather liked the other boy's open displays of friendship with him; it cemented a personal bond between them, and Tsuna liked that he could look into Yamamoto's eyes and know he was seeing a friend.

This meant Tsuna didn't want to bring any harm to his friend, either. Tsuna might not care about his reputation, but Yamamoto might care about his own– so Tsuna would have to explain what their association with each other truly meant. Tsuna didn't know what he'd do if Yamamoto took the safe approach and decided to put some distance between them, but... Tsuna would cross that bridge when he got to it.

Gokudera was a different story. It wasn't uncommon for Omegas to befriend Betas; it was the most natural course, given that Omega tended to be kept separate if not related by blood, and any Alpha was seen as a prospective Mate first and foremost. Tsuna definitely thought of Gokudera as a friend, and Gokudera may think that of Tsuna too – but how the silver-haired boy _showed_ this didn't exactly fall under 'normal friends' behavior.

Gokudera was...expressive. And explosive. If he was angry, you knew it; if he was annoyed, you knew it; if he was happy, you knew it. It was honestly rather relieving, because Tsuna never had to guess what the bomber was thinking. Gokudera wore his heart on his sleeve for the whole world to see.

The thing was, this meant Gokudera wasn't at all shy about showing the world what he thought of Tsuna, and to Gokudera – _Tsuna was the best._ The hero-worship was disconcerting in its own right; Tsuna loved that Gokudera didn't seem to care one whit about Dynamics and threw himself into things full-bodied, but he also knew that he himself was not an object worthy of such extreme adoration.

Tsuna...should probably talk to Gokudera about that too. He didn't know how he'd try to impress upon his new friend that treating him like something just a step below a deity was strange ( _terrifying_ ), but Tsuna would be better served to bring it up now before Gokudera built him a shrine or something.

" _No matter what, you will always be our Boss, Tsuna-nii."_

Tsuna winced internally. He knew Gokudera was tied up intimately with the mafia – someone didn't get a name like 'Smoking Bomb' by delivering the neighborhood bulletin, after all – but Tsuna was still having trouble adjusting to the whole mafia heir thing. Even Reborn's constant presence felt more like he was being tutored by a particularly sadistic demon, rather than being groomed into a mafia don. (If anything, Tsuna felt more like he was being groomed into the next corpse, because Reborn's teaching style was more 'run from the bullets' rather than 'solve for x using this formula'.) Lambo's presence had not exactly helped this.

The cow-printed child wouldn't go home. In fact, all of his belongings had been labelled with the Sawada home address, which meant someone thought Lambo _should_ live with them. And for all her hesitation when it came to Alphas, even small ones, Nana wasn't cruel enough to kick out a child; instead, she'd set up the spare bedroom – previously meant for Reborn, even if he refused to use it – for Lambo.

Lambo was all the chaos of Gokudera in about a quarter of the size. Dinner last night had ended up on the ceiling courtesy of a grenade Lambo had thrown onto the table, and Reborn's subsequent rampage at the ruined meal had left Tsuna with the responsibility of coaxing the Bovino child out from under the kitchen sink.

Lambo had yet to use the 10 Year Bazooka, which was a bit of a letdown because Tsuna wanted to know what the child's older counterpart had meant with his parting words. It nagged at Tsuna in his downtime, when only the darkened ceiling of his bedroom and Reborn's quiet breathing were his company.

"-awada-kun. Sawada-kun!"

Tsuna blinked. Had Nezu still been talking? Oh well, there was a reason Tsuna never listened to his class lectures.

"I'm sorry, sensei, I didn't quite catch that," Tsuna spoke up, voice low. It sounded timid to most people, with the exception of those who actually knew him.

Nezu-sensei snorted. "I see you're as air-headed as ever. I said, it would be best if you didn't have any further contact with Gokudera or Yamamoto. It's not good for any of you. Don't you have any sense of decency?"

The flame wrapped around his heart surged, racing along Tsuna's veins. Tsuna didn't let it push him, though; he refused to let it out no matter how righteously infuriated he felt at his teacher's words. Tsuna took a calming breath, then another, and then one more – he needed to regain himself. He couldn't just beat down his own teachers, after all.

"We're friends," Tsuna explained, his tone almost detached. The Principal sat a little straighter, obviously taken aback; no one had expected _Tsuna_ to give a counter argument. "I don't remember ever hearing that having friends is a bad thing, sensei, so I don't know why this is an issue."

Feigning ignorance pushed the conversation in two possible directions. Tsuna knew what they were getting at but unless he made it explicit that he didn't understand any of the implications, they wouldn't voice their reasoning aloud. Hearing their justification for trying to separate him from his friends was more for their benefit than Tsuna's; hopefully, hearing their own lame excuses would be enough to wake them up to the fact that they really had no leg to stand on.

Sometimes, though, Tsuna gave people too much the benefit of the doubt.

"An Omega doesn't need friends," Nezu-sensei said tartly. "Give yourself a few years, Sawada, and with any luck you'll have a Mate and a belly full of babies."

For one blindingly horrible moment, all Tsuna saw was orange as the flames in his blood raged and the phantom feeling of bandages wrapped around his throat surged to the forefront of his mind. His chair screeched as Tsuna jerked to his feet, lips twisted into a snarl. Tsuna noted both Beta males had wide eyes now, openly gaping at his reaction; the suspicious black shadow by the window had actually come inside, Reborn's tiny form and stoic expression not enough to halt Tsuna's movements.

The Principal's office door flying off its hinges and smashing into Nezu-sensei was, though.

Tsuna paused, the small office suddenly awash with the scent of blood and tea. Killing intent smothered the room's occupants a second later, just as the tall, dark figure that often sent Namimori citizens into gibbering fits of fear swooped into the office.

"H-H-Hibari-kun-" Principal Itobe choked out, eyes comically wide and so pale, his pallor was more reminiscent of paper rather than skin.

Hibari didn't even look at the man, eyes on Tsuna. The Omega teen stood at attention, posture tense and amber eyes burning. The prefect's lips twitched up in the beginnings of a smirk, tonfas seemingly materializing in his hands.

At the same time, Reborn's Leon-mallet came careening forward and smashed into the back of Tsuna's head, knocking the slight boy over. Tsuna scrambled back up onto his feet, one hand to the back of his head, the flames simmering in his veins no longer threatening to explode as intensely as before.

Hibari eyed him for a long moment, but then apparently disappointed, his tonfas folded back into their harnesses and the Disciplinary Head turned scathing steel eyes on a terrified principal. "There is a mistake in your hiring policies, herbivore" Hibari bit out coldly to the older man, pulling out a manila folder from the folds of his uniform. (Tsuna wondered where Hibari kept _anything_ on his person. Was Hibari so frightening that even the _laws of physics_ wouldn't dare impede him?)

Principal Itobe stammered incoherently but shut up when Hibari's eyes narrowed in annoyance. The prefect slammed the folder down onto the desk, some of the papers falling out and across the surface.

Tsuna eyed them in muted interest. Most appeared to be exam papers and essays, all with failing marks equal or even worse than Tsuna's average scores. The most surprising thing was that Tsuna recognized the name on all the papers.

 _Nezu Douhachirou._ Tsuna glanced to the floor, where Nezu-sensei had passed out from Hibari's violent entrance.

"Submission of a fraudulent education background is against Namimori Junior High's School Codes," Hibari stated. The prefect turned his eyes to Tsuna, not quite a glare but definitely threatening; he just wouldn't be Hibari without his very presence being registered as a hostile force. "Your presence is no longer required in this office, little animal. You are to leave school grounds if you have no afterschool activities."

Tsuna did not need to be told twice, pivoting and dashing through the gaping doorway and out of the office. Just as Tsuna made it a few steps down the corridor, he paused as conversation resumed once more in the office he'd fled.

" _...Sawada Tsunayoshi's transgressions fall under the umbrella of the Disciplinary Committee. You are not to contact him with the intention of correcting his behavior again,"_ came Hibari's words, as warm as sleeting ice.

Tsuna continued down the hallway, fighting back a shudder. The ghost feeling of bandages wrapped around his throat faded once more into the back of his mind.

* * *

Reborn hesitated over the blank sheet of paper, tiny body stilled on the desk, half-listening to Tsuna's steady breathing in the bed next to him. It was well past midnight now, only the moonlight that could be barely glimpsed through the curtains and the lamplight illuminating Reborn's start of a letter to the Nono.

There were many ways for this letter to go. The first was the unadulterated truth, which the Nono expected from him regardless. When it came to grooming Sawada Tsunayoshi into a capable breeder for the next generation of the Vongola, Nono had believed no one but Reborn could be trusted with such a task. It would be dishonorable for Reborn to be anything less than honest with the man who had implicitly entrusted him with the next generation of the greatest mafia family.

Plainly stating _'Sawada Tsunayoshi would sooner grind any prospective suitors into the dirt than entertain a courtship'_ wasn't what Reborn wanted to tell Timoteo though.

The Vongola were desperate for heirs. Timoteo's bloodline was for all intents and purposes, lost; with the death of his three eldest sons and Xanxus no longer in the running, this left them a vacuum for which there were only two outcomes: either a civilian but blood heir ascend to the mantle of power, or the Family would dissolve into a vicious fight for control among the remaining Alphas after Timoteo finally passed away.

Tsuna was the Vongola's last hope. Of the many issues this presented, the most concerning was that the Vongola's hope for Sawada Tsunayoshi could not be more unsuitable for him.

Sawada Tsunayoshi was unwilling to submit.

Reborn understood what that meant and could already see how this would play out. If Tsuna refused to willingly submit to an Alpha's dominance, then eventually – he would be _forced_ to submit. Among the young Alphas Tsuna surrounded himself with, such as his classmates, Tsuna could reject their attempts at domination without much repercussion or issue.

But these were children before Presentation; once they'd finally Presented, finally come fully into themselves as Alphas and Betas and Omegas things would change. That became a whole other ball field, one which would not end well for Tsuna. Especially in the cut-throat world of the mafia, eventually an Alpha would come along that was strong enough to force Tsuna into submission.

That was just the way of their world. Reborn had seen too much of it to expect anything different.

Reborn would stick around just long enough to comb through prospective mates, ones that he felt wouldn't grind such a vibrant soul as Tsuna's into dust. Hibari Kyouya was first among Reborn's considerations; a strong Alpha candidate who already demonstrated excellent leadership skills and frankly amazing battle prowess. He also seemed to understand Tsuna's _unique_ disposition when it came to latent dynamic issues, which was both a plus and minus. Rather than trying to reassert his dominance, as Alphas were supposed to do, especially for traumatized Omega like Tsuna, Hibari just...left Tsuna to it.

Reborn was still trying to puzzle out if this was some kind of Hibari courtship method, where he sniffed out possible Mates for himself based on how violent they could be. Tsuna, at the very least, had piqued Hibari's interest in that arena.

Gokudera Hayato had been called over simply to buff up protection for Reborn's student. The Beta would never be considered a possible Mate for Tsuna, but Reborn knew Bianchi's brother was desperate for acknowledgment and a gifted assassin in his own right. Reborn could use him as a bodyguard for the troublesome Omega while scoping out other possible candidates.

The second consideration had been Yamamoto Takeshi. The boy's prodigal reflexes and natural skill as an assassin would be enough to interest any mafia, and Reborn knew that with some training, Yamamoto could easily become one of the most feared men in the world. His charisma and genuine amiable personality could win over Tsuna, especially with enough time, which was what Reborn had been banking on when he'd pushed Tsuna into further establishing a connection with the baseball club's star member.

Reborn had known about Yamamoto's depression as a result of his slump in his baseball, and he'd even foreseen the Alpha boy's attempt at leaping from the school roof – which was why Reborn had been in the perfect position to make sure Tsuna saved him. Reborn had expected the experience to change some of Tsuna's views on Alphas; Yamamoto's apparent weakness would be enough to soften some of Tsuna's hardline thoughts about his dynamic's counterparts.

This had worked, as Reborn had expected; what he _hadn't_ expected was the Yamamoto end of the equation. Yamamoto Takeshi was supposed to laugh off his own suicide attempt and possibly lament his own silliness in doing so, and befriend Tsuna in the process. Hopefully through sheer exposure, Yamamoto would be able to whittle away at the many guards Tsuna put up when it came to Alphas, which would subsequently make Yamamoto one of the best candidates to mate with Reborn's wayward student.

Yamamoto had dashed all of Reborn's careful planning into the dirt with the same damn smile he wore when cheerfully telling Tsuna that the Omega could dominate him. That was not what Reborn had wanted or expected out of Tsuna's rescue attempt of the Alpha, but now Reborn had another strange Namimori-born Alpha that was willing to let Tsuna do just about anything he damn well wanted. All of Reborn's careful research had come to naught.

Yamamoto Keiko had died in a gas accident. Reborn had seen all the reports, read the obituary, hell – he'd even visited the grave. Reborn had researched Yamamoto Takeshi thoroughly prior to his attempts at pushing him and Tsuna together; Reborn had anticipated that Yamamoto would fall easily for an Omega, as was common for Alphas from Alpha-Omega homes.

But Yamamoto Keiko had not died in a gas accident, despite what Hibari Sasako had filed in the follow-up reports. On the rooftop that night, Yamamoto Keiko's son had wondered aloud that if his mother could have fought like Tsuna, would she have lived – implying that she had not fallen prey to a mere unfortunate accident, but that she'd been targeted and _murdered_.

Reborn knew of Yamamoto Tsuyoshi. A former swordsman, a master assassin that the Varia had once scoped before turning their attention elsewhere. Tsuyoshi had been retired for a good, long while, but that didn't mean he had no shortage of enemies. It was only expected someone would come for his blood someday, and his wife and child would have been easy targets. It just turned out Yamamoto Keiko had been a target. So why did her obituary claim differently?

Hibari Sasako had filed her death as an accident.

Hibari Sasako had investigated the assault of Sawada Tsunayoshi, leaving the case cold.

Hibari Sasako had died on the job, taking her secrets with her.

Reborn's attempts at gathering information about the late Hibari Sasako had yielded _nothing_. She had become a police detective soon after graduation, ruling over Namimori for a short but peaceful time. For the most part, her track record with cases was fantastic; she'd solved her cases with a near-perfect rate with only one glaring exception.

The assault of Sawada Tsunayoshi was seven years ago. In the weeks after the incident, Hibari Sasako had painstakingly listed out the finer details of the case: times, locations, weather, and a multitude of pictures of where she suspected the assault to have taken place. The file itself showed her to be someone of impeccable detail, and after perusing former cases of hers, Reborn knew she had a sharp mind and trustworthy instincts.

So it didn't make sense for the Sawada file to have nothing more than that.

It was as if Hibari Sasako just forgot the case entirely after only a few weeks of investigation. Reborn knew it was common for cases to fall to the wayside, declared 'cold' after only a short time, but Namimori did not have a high enough crime rate to justify the inattention and Hibari Sasako hounded her cases like vengeance given physical form.

And yet, she'd allowed Sawada Tsunayoshi's case to fade into the obscure?

This uncharacteristic action dredged up another feeling of discomfort for Reborn, an idea he'd only vaguely entertained given his first interactions with Tsuna.

Would Sawada Iemitsu, the famed Young Lion of the Vongola, really allow his own child's assault to remain unresolved like this?

Reborn knew the answer to that, but that didn't mean he really _understood_.

Iemitsu had warned Reborn to be 'gentle' because Tsuna was 'sensitive'. Hibari Sasako had stopped investigating the assault, which would have seemed uncharacteristic of the esteemed detective until Reborn discovered she'd had no problem in forging documents to cover up Yamamoto Keiko's murder. This meant Hibari Sasako would do damn well anything so long as it resulted in effectively maintaining her 'herd'.

Of course Sawada Iemitsu would _never_ allow his child's assault to go unresolved. Of course Hibari Sasako would never allow a case of hers to go unsolved.

 _Sawada Tsunayoshi's medical reports were missing._

Reborn turned off the light, allowing the room to descend once more into darkness and leaving his letter to Nono empty once more. He climbed silently into his hammock, turning over but dark eyes open to regard the small form curled into the nest of orange and cream-colored cotton blankets.

Amber eyes stared back at him, before sliding shut and back into the realm of feigned sleep.

Just what was Namimori hiding?

* * *

 **End Chapter 8**

* * *

 **A/N** : They're going to get you eventually, Hana. No one escapes the mad descent into 10th-Gen insanity.

Decided to skip the whole 'Expel Crisis' since, in this 'verse, Nezu isn't going to try and expel Tsuna. (That is bullying, and you just can't bully a poor, frail Omega, you know?) How Hibari got a hold of Nezu's documents will be explained next chapter.

 _Notes on Hibari Sasako:_

-Her death is left intentionally vague. She's dead for Reasons.

-Oh, but Yamamoto's mom's death and Tsuna's assault are unrelated, save for their connection via Hibari Sasako. Sasako forging the documents is just meant to show the crack in her reputation as a no-nonsense detective. Reborn finally clued in that Hibari Sasako is capable of hiding things, which means a lot where Tsuna is concerned. ;)

Thank you again for all your reviews! It really helps fuel the creative process!

 ** _Please be kind and drop a review! :)_**


	9. I am the business

**A/N:** Thank you so much for your reviews! :) Sorry it took so long to update, Final Exams are just as hard from the teacher's side, haha~

-Also sorry if the formatting is a little strange, I was having some issues uploading. -sigh-

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn.

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

" **I'm not in the business. I am the business."**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

 _Tsch._

 _Tsch._

Hayato's eyes lingered on the scattered papers before once again drawing back to his fingers. His fingernails were clean and trimmed, his calloused grip the only indication of their violent nature. He had large hands, he thought; long-fingered and slender, pianist hands through and through. It was funny that he handled dynamite more than piano keys.

 _Tsch._

Funny in the way that most things in Hayato's life were funny, in that it wasn't at all.

 _Tsch._

Hayato paused in his ministrations, letting green eyes fall on the paper plane he held in his pianist (murderer) hands. For just a moment, he allowed the world in: the smell of smoke and blood in his apartment, the cold feel of the tile floor beneath him, the light caress of the breeze coming through his open window. His neighbor the floor below him was yelling; Hayato had never seen him, but heard enough from the arguments through the floorboards to glean that the couple suffered from an issue of infidelity.

With a flick of the wrist, Hayato sent his paper plane sailing. It hit the wall with a light _tsch!,_ falling to the ground to join it's many comrades. Hayato would burn them all later; he'd already uploaded digital copies to his computer files. It was far easier to store them digitally rather than physically, especially these days.

But for now, he'd let out some of his built-up stress by playing around uselessly. Hayato didn't claim to have any hobbies, aside from UMA-hunting; but origami helped train dexterity, and one day he'd be able to get that paper plane trick down with enough practice.

 _Tsch._

Hayato could accomplish anything, with enough practice. He'd just have to train more.

 _Tsch._

Even though he was a kid, Hayato knew he couldn't slack off. Not now that he'd finally found someone worth following. The very thought of his new boss sent a warm trill down to his very bones, slackening his grip on his next paper plane. The edges he'd been about to fold fell back to reveal the contents.

Nezu Douhachirou's personal documents stared up at Hayato's ceiling. If Hayato's chosen boss had been anyone but Sawada Tsunayoshi, it would have been Nezu's corpse doing the same.

Fortunately for the former teacher, Hayato had followed Tsuna's example and did not try to eliminate threats in solely violent ways. Which was why Hayato had researched the man that had tried to separate him from the Vongola's heir, uncovering Nezu's deceptions and then passing the information along to the one authority in Namimori no one could fight.

Hayato folded the edges back down.

Of course Hayato understood. Sawada Tsunayoshi is an Omega.

 _Tsch_. Hayato had thrown the paper plane; it fell amongst the others. Many of the documents were about Nezu Douhachirou, but not all; some other individuals had made the list.

Sawada Tsunayoshi is an Omega. The Vongola would never allow someone they believed weak to lead. The Secondo had staged a coup against the Primo for perceived weakness, after all.

 _Tsch_. Not all the individuals Hayato had investigated were as overtly-corrupt as the Maths teacher had been. Some were actually considered upstanding members of society. Hayato had had to work a little harder on those.

Outside of Reborn, Hayato was the only mafioso to have contact with Sawada Tsunayoshi. He was the only mafioso period to have fought the Omega male – and what better way was there to truly get to know someone?

 _Tsch_. So where there were no chinks in the armor, Hayato had _made_ them. Having been made to do grunt work since he was young paid off here; nothing was easier than forging documents. Not all the lies Hayato had made reality were punishable by law, but socially – _socially_ , he could crush just about anyone.

Tsuna had saved him. Tsuna had fought him, had saw exactly what Hayato was, knew exactly what Hayato could do, had experienced what Hayato _would_ do – and he'd still rushed forward to save him. Tsuna had forgiven him for his arrogance, for his violence. It was sincerity. It was kindness.

It was weakness.

 _Tsch_. Photoshopping pictures to show illicit affairs, rumors spread about possible theft, identity fraud, false debt collection – with enough variation and time, Hayato could eliminate the perceived threats in Namimori.

Hayato understood. Omega were less second-class citizens, more alike to property than people. The Vongola only saw Sawada Tsunayoshi as a means to an end. What use could the Vongola have for an Omega that spared those that tried to do them harm? Vongola bosses were not weak, naïve Omega that spared those that attacked them.

Hayato knew what Reborn expected of him, as a Beta. Hayato knew what Reborn was looking for, when he'd involved the Alpha Yamamoto Takeshi. Hayato knew what the Vongola expected of the Omega Sawada Tsunayoshi.

Hayato knew and understood all of what Vongola intended. And as long as the world remained as is, it would happen just as Reborn and the Vongola Ninthplanned. As a member of the strongest mafia famiglia in the world, all Hayato had to do was play his part.

 _Tsch_. The paper planes composed of various school faculty members' and local government officers' private files lay scattered about Hayato's floor. Hayato knew, after all, that change must always begin at home; Namimori was home now, and so it would have to start there.

Because for Hayato, loyalty had to be earned – and once earned, it was _everything_.

And _Sawada Tsunayoshi_ had earned his loyalty first.

* * *

Breakfast was starting to become quite crowded at the Sawada home.

Tsuna knew why Gokudera came, of course – the silver-haired boy had been personally invited to come eat meals at the Sawada residence, given his poor diet choices. Gokudera seemed to subsist mostly on instant noodles and take-out, to the concern of Tsuna's mother, so she preferred the Beta boy came over to eat.

Reborn was, of course, a live-in tutor, and free board and meals were part of his payment. Tsuna didn't mind the hitman's presence too much during this time, and nowadays, Nana wasn't quite so tense around Tsuna's tutor; she'd even started providing snacks and stocked Reborn's favorite coffee.

Yamamoto wasn't over quite as consistently as Gokudera, as he tended to go straight to school on the mornings he had early baseball practice or when he decided to eat breakfast with his father. He still came over often enough that Nana no longer showed any surprise when he turned up, although Tsuna was guaranteed a clamorous breakfast once Gokudera caught sight of the baseball player.

Lambo was the newest addition, and the only people he seemed to like were Tsuna and his mother. Tsuna had easily won the child over with candy, which Tsuna had given him generously in bids to keep the child quiet as he studied or struggled to survive Reborn's training. This didn't mean Lambo was docile in the least, and could be counted on to destroy at least one piece of furniture a day. Tsuna was becoming distressingly desensitized to explosions.

Thus, a morning as quiet as this one was rare. Yamamoto had messaged saying he had baseball practice and wouldn't be making it to breakfast – why the boy even bothered to report to Tsuna in the first place was a mystery – and so only Gokudera was on his way, although through the rote of experience Tsuna knew it'd take the dynamite-wielding boy another 15 minutes to get to Tsuna's home.

So Tsuna got to enjoy entering the kitchen only to Lambo's rapid gunfire, just before Reborn pitched the child out the window. Tsuna paused briefly to make sure Lambo survived the landing, then took his customary seat at the table and greeted his mother with a smile.

"If you go to school with bed-hair, Hibari will kill you," was Reborn's morning greeting.

Tsuna shot up, disgruntled expression in place. "Why would Hibari-san care about the state of my hair? The Disciplinary Committee only checks uniforms!" Tsuna shot back, but nevertheless retreated to the bathroom to comb fingers through his unruly fringe.

Only once Tsuna was reasonably sure Hibari didn't have grounds to bite him to death for any number of reasons did Tsuna leave the bathroom, just as the doorbell rang. Tsuna was rather relieved; if Gokudera was here, he tended to be too distracting that Tsuna didn't have to field Reborn's offhand insults.

Tsuna opened the door with a smile.

"Italian Pizza Delivery~!" the Beta woman on the other side greeted.

Tsuna's Intuition flared to life at the look in those drooping green eyes, long strands of blossom-pink hair kept out of the way by a white visor. He took an instinctive step back, words fumbling out of his mouth in a shameful high squeak. "W-Wrong house," he managed out.

"It's a delivery of Clam Pizza!" the woman stated, sultry smile in place.

Tsuna wanted to know if she really thought this disguise would work. "It's 7 in the morning," Tsuna choked out. "And what pizza place allows their delivery person to wear miniskirts and expose their tattoos?!"

"So you found me out, Vongola Tenth," the woman mused, although her smile never dropped. She stepped further into the house, manicured nails on the edge of the lid of the pizza box. "You're not half-bad."

 _Were you even trying?!_ Tsuna wondered.

To Tsuna's mounting horror, the Beta girl whipped out a gas mask and put it on. _"Enjoy!"_ came out muffled from beneath it, and then she opened the pizza box.

Tsuna was struck by overwhelming nausea.

This lasted all of five seconds, just as a bright purple grenade landed atop the glowing foodstuff held in the girl's hands and exploded it into a miniature hail of fire. Tsuna pulled enough of his senses back to stumble away, toppling into the kitchen to curious glances from the two occupants.

Tsuna wondered what it meant of his life, for his mother to not do much more than blink at him and smile – as if her child crawling into the kitchen was an everyday occurrence. _Wait, it is,_ Tsuna thought, idly crushing the burning tips of his hair that had been caught in the fire between two fingers.

"That reminds me," Reborn started. "Bianchi is in town."

"And what the hell does that mean?!" Tsuna replied in a harried tone, picking himself up from the floor. Lambo came flying in from the kitchen door at this moment with a high-pitched scream, fat tears and snot running down his face. Tsuna caught the cow-child full in the face, knocked once more to the ground as the pink-haired girl entered the room.

"Reborn!" she squealed, pulling off her face mask to reveal a besotted expression. Tsuna picked Lambo off him, not bothering to pull the crying child off his lap so that he could eye the unfolding scene in curiosity.

"Everyone that tries to kill me knows you," Tsuna grumbled, shooting Reborn a scathing look. The hitman sipped his espresso without a twitch.

"Ciaossu, Bianchi," Reborn said, beady eyes on the girl as her own green irises welled up in tears.

"Oh, Reborn-chan's friend has come to visit? How nice!" Nana laughed cheerily. Tsuna envied her oblivious nature and adaptable composure.

"Reborn," Bianchi started, moving closer as a blush dusted her cheeks. "Just as I thought – this life really doesn't suit you. It's too peaceful... You belong to a world of darkness and blood!"

Tsuna tuned out immediately as the girl went on about whatever bloody misadventures she'd shared with the baby hitman, with the same tone a sane person would use to describe a romantic date. Of course Reborn would have some crazy assassin girlfriend; Tsuna just hadn't expected a chemical attack. And what kind of assassin posed as a _pizza deliveryman_ , of all things?

"...I see! You can't come back because of _him_ ," Bianchi's exclamation brought Tsuna back. The pink-haired girl was glaring down at him. "Unless the Vongola Tenth dies, Reborn won't be free!"

Tsuna stared at her. "...you can have him," Tsuna offered, motioning to his tutor. Reborn shot at his feet without looking away from his drink.

"Reborn, when he's dead," Bianchi declared, wiping away her tears. "I'll come back for you!"

Bianchi disappeared out the door, only the smoking remnants of her previous assassination plot and a silent kitchen left in her wake. A generous pause later as the past few moments' events sunk in, and then Tsuna slowly turned accusing eyes onto Reborn.

Reborn met his gaze boredly. "You're going to be late, dame-Tsuna," he stated.

Tsuna shrieked as he finally realized the time, pelting out of the kitchen and up the stairs to grab his things. Nana had finished boxing up the boy's lunch, along with two extra bentou boxes; after she'd discovered Yamamoto's father had been packing additional food for Tsuna and Gokudera, she thought she should do the same. This meant that lunchtime for the three boys consisted of either a Yamamoto Tsuyoshi sushi meal or Sawada Nana homemade meal.

Reborn watched the humming matriarch of the Sawada home in consideration. "Mama," he began after a moment. Nana turned around to smile at him, a silent cue to continue. "You must be tired from doing so much housework. Why doesn't Tsuna help you cook?"

Nana eyed him, then burst into giggles.

"Reborn-chan," she managed out between laughs. "Tsu-kun can't cook!"

* * *

Tending to the home was an Omega's duty. This included menial house chores, such as cleaning and doing the laundry, as well as cooking; their Mate was the breadwinner, which left the Omega to keep the home tidy and cook the meals. In couples that did not have an Omega partner, it was acceptable for the Beta to assume the role of homemaker, and generally this fell to female Betas over male Betas.

Schools took this to heart, and it shown no more clearly than in Home Economics. For Namimori Junior High, Home Ec was an elective course; students could either attend Home Ec or Art/Music Appreciation. Alphas and Beta males were generally pushed into the latter category; Omega and Beta females into the former. Although the electives were presented as a choice, students had to be granted acceptance by the teachers leading the class, which filtered them out appropriately.

This was how Tsuna found himself in Home Ec, despite having no ability to cook or desire to learn. He'd much rather be in Art/Music Appreciation; apparently, they spent most of the time listening to random snippets of music and goofing around. Tsuna spent most of Home Ec watching his more competent peers cook or wasting ingredients in his attempts at doing the same.

Asai-sensei, the Beta teacher of Home Ec, had already given up on Tsuna months ago and now just pretended not to see him in class. In the event he was grouped up with others, his groupmates did most of the work. When it came down to individual work, Tsuna either failed horribly or failed not-too-horribly.

Even then, Tsuna understood the general principle of it all. He may abhor the reasoning behind his school putting him in Home Ec, but even he realized that cooking should be considered a basic survival skill. He couldn't live off instant noodles and takeout for the rest of his life. This was why he tried not to step on any toes in class and even made attempts at cooking.

Reborn, as he always did, had to mess everything up.

"At the suggestion of the genius Reboyama-sensei," Asai-sensei fairly gushed at the front of the class, producing a picture of said genius which was really just Reborn with a fake moustache and chef's hat. "Today we'll be making onigiri!"

They were supposed to be learning about different traditional Western dishes today. Why had they suddenly gone to onigiri? Tsuna eyed his tutor, dressed – of all things - as a large wooden spoon.

"A mafia boss should be able to make something as easy as onigiri," Reborn stated.

Tsuna glared down at him. "How are onigiri related in any way to being a mafia boss?" he hissed back.

Reborn launched himself at Tsuna's face, the wooden face of his spoon costume practically pistol whipping Tsuna across the head. Everyone in class pretended not to notice the Omega collapse to the ground with a small shriek, clearly well-trained in the art of avoidance after a week and a half of pretending not to notice how Tsuna affected the likes of Gokudera and Yamamoto.

Asai-sensei's expression dropped a bit, before a flash of terror came across her face and she resolutely continued her instructions. All the teachers in Namimori Junior High had been appraised of the 'Sawada situation', as it was being referred to; namely, they were told to ignore any strangeness about the previously docile Omega boy. Any issues with his behavior were never to be addressed, and if they as teachers had any problem with that – they could take their concerns to the head of the Disciplinary Committee himself.

Naturally, no one had any such suicidal inclinations and instead vowed to pretend everything was normal. This included Asai-sensei pretending not to notice Sawada arguing with a wooden spoon.

* * *

Nana hummed as she carried the overly-filled laundry basket down the hall, having finished folding another load of clothes. It was her own clothes this time, now smelling vaguely of the lavender-scented detergent she used for the wash. She found the smell calming, and the false scent of it tended to soothe Tsuna because then it became harder to detect his own and – now – even Reborn's or Lambo's scents.

Her home was livelier lately. It was the type of environment she'd yearned for, once upon a time – when she'd wanted a big family, wanted possibly a dozen kids she could love and raise and nurture. Reality had changed such dreams, and Nana had buried such notions years ago as she watched her child almost die on a cold hospital bed.

But now here she was, making food for four children and the number only continued to grow. Lambo was a delight; all the energy and wild imagination of a child, with a gung-ho attitude that produced interesting reactions in Tsuna. Her lovely son had always been on the quieter side, beaten down by one aspect of society or another, but only Lambo had been able to pull out such a look of fond exasperation on Tsuna's face. Nana intended to spoil the cow-print child sweet for that reason alone.

Yamamoto and Gokudera were another two mouths to feed. While neither lived in the Sawada home, they were over often enough to become common fixtures. Nana was not stupid nor blind, which she'd have to be not to see how the two absolutely adored her son. Gokudera may look like a teenage gangster, but his manners were extremely polite and his eagerness reminded her of a really adorable puppy. Yamamoto had been a spot of concern for her – an Alpha boy, of all people, trailing after Tsuna! But the athletic teen was polite and always smiling, and he never made any overtures that Tsuna found uncomfortable.

And it was Tsuna's response to these new additions that Nana watched most closely. Tsuna, who complained when Lambo got too noisy but played with him whenever he was free; Tsuna, who shuffled awkwardly as Gokudera degenerated into university-level science ramblings but made sure he ate a proper breakfast, lunch, and dinner; Tsuna, who chastised Yamamoto when he tried to start a game of catch with a still not quite healed arm but offered to cheer for him at his next school game.

Tsuna, who watched Reborn's every move with caution but allowed himself to be taught.

Reborn was an Alpha, Nana knew – and he was also not a child. There were many things in this world Nana could not understand, and in her daily life, knew better than to dwell on them. Reborn happened to be one of those things. She may never know the full story behind the baby in the suit who had come to tutor her child.

But that did not mean she could not theorize.

She knew it was unlikely to ever be confirmed, and that was okay. Being married to Iemitsu had taught Nana many things, and among those hard life lessons was that she may never have all the answers. Iemitsu used to tell her that she could have her suspicions, but that she should keep them close to herself until they were inarguably confirmed.

Nana understood the reasoning. Suspicions and assumptions made up quite a bit of her life, and confirmations very little. It's why she could always give Reborn an airy smile even as she carefully observed the developing relationship between her son and his tutor.

Nana entered her bedroom, not surprised to find Lambo rummaging through her things. The little Alpha child was a bit of an airhead, misplacing his various explosive toys here and there. Nana didn't mind, settingthe laundry basket down on her bed.

"What are you looking for, Lambo-chan?" she asked.

The boy turned a sulking expression her way, and Nana valiantly contained a giggle. Children were adorable. "The Great Lambo cannot find his grenade launcher," he reported to her. "I bet that evil mastermind Reborn hid it, fearing my wrath!"

Nana nodded good-naturedly. "I'll keep an eye out for it," she promised the boy.

Leaving the room and Lambo to his own devices, Nana went back downstairs. Lambo's toys were always brightly colored so she wasn't sure how he'd managed to lose them, but Reborn did often send the poor child flying – often crashing into neighboring homes and yards. The Sakaki housewife had stormed into Nana's yard just a few days ago, carrying Lambo by his collar and practically shoving him into Tsuna's face while loudly reprimanding him for his lax watch of the child.

The scene had been especially interesting to Nana: Lambo, who had been crying loudly at the rough treatment; Tsuna, who had registered Sakaki's actions with a faint frown; Gokudera, who had picked up on the Omega's irritation and glared at the middle-aged woman, lit cigarette between his lips and a stick of dynamite in his hand.

Sakaki had quickly backed off with stuttering apologies, fleeing without a backwards glance. Nana now had to leave the neighborhood bulletin on the woman's gate as she dashed into her house and locked the door when any of the Sawada household meandered past.

Nana courteously pretended not to be amused by it. Sakaki used to rail the hardest against her about Nana's refusal to find Tsuna an Alpha surrogate, once causing a scene at a nearby grocery store. Nana had kept then 11-year-old Tsuna behind her at the time, mostly shielding him from view as their neighbor lectured her about proper Omega rearing.

 _Oh_ , Nana was reminded, entering the kitchen and spotting the calendar tacked onto the wall. _Tsu-kun's doctor's appointment is soon._ She'd have to prep the home, and occupy Lambo and Reborn so that Tsuna could have his privacy. It was nice having the doctor come see them rather than the other way around, but now with more people in the home, Tsuna may be more stressed.

"Mama! Mama!" Lambo's piping voice called out excitedly, and Nana could hear thumping, tiny footsteps quickly making their way down the stairs. She couldn't help a smile; Lambo's natural exuberance was just so endearing. "The Great Lambo has made a huge discovery!"

"Oh, did you find your grenade launcher?" Nana asked, just as the child sprinted into the kitchen. Her eyes caught on what he held between his small hands, heart momentarily stopping.

Honestly, her children were going to be the death of her. Nothing but a constant parade of shocks.

"A treasure box," Lambo snickered, holding up the shiny metal box. It was plain, closer in size to a small gift box, firmly shut and locked with a miniature coded padlock. There was nothing distinctly remarkable about it, and the padlock was the kind that could be easily removed with enough time and effort.

That was fine, though. Nana hadn't needed an impossible lock, just a guarantee that the box wouldn't open because she had accidentally dropped it.

"Lambo-chan," Nana started gently, moving forward to pull the box from Lambo's hands. "This is Mama's treasure. I'm afraid you can't keep it."

Lambo's bottom lip wobbled dangerously, pretty green eyes filling with tears. "But the great Lambo found it," he said, although all his fight had left him. This was the effect she had on children, Nana suspected; she was the Mama, and her word was law within her home. Even the rambunctious Lambo understood that.

"You did, and I'm very impressed," Nana said, still smiling. It _was_ impressive; she'd kept the box under the floorboards of her bedroom near her bedside, just as Iemitsu had taught her. She hadn't asked him why he had taught her such a trick, in just the same way she never peered at what he kept hidden under the floorboards near his side of the bed.

Marriage was all about compromise.

"Mama's treasure is a secret, Lambo-chan," Nana continued, crouching down to be more level with the child. Her smile turned conspiratorial, her words playful. "Now it's a secret between you and me."

Lambo blinked wide, innocent eyes at her. "Our secret?" he echoed.

"That's right!" Nana giggled. "And because Lambo-chan is such a good boy, I know he will definitely keep this secret and not tell anyone!"

Lambo nodded a bit hesitantly, evidently still put out he would not get the 'treasure'. Nana's smile was blinding – children really were adorable.

"But you know what, Lambo-chan?" Nana said, rising back to full height. "I have an even better treasure."

Lambo's eyes flicked from her smiling face, to the box, then back to her face. His expression was curious and eager, as she'd hoped.

"I've hidden it in Lambo-chan's favorite place," Nana winked. "Mama thinks you deserve it, so she bought you a whooooole lot!"

Lambo's face lit up, and he pivoted to go dashing back out of the kitchen with a cheery squeal. Nana made a mental note to clean up in Tsuna's room – Lambo's favorite place – once the boy found the stash of grape candy her son kept hidden in his desk drawer.

Nana turned the metal box over in her hand, the light thunking sound of the object inside barely audible in an otherwise quiet kitchen. Lambo was now safely distracted upstairs, and both her son and his tutor were out – at Tsuna's school, she suspected of the latter. She had time to herself for now.

She hadn't seen the metal box in years.

She'd thought about it every single day.

* * *

Reborn was not amused.

"Well," Tsuna hedged out hesitantly, chagrined smile affixed firmly to his face. "This is definitely one of my better attempts. It's even the right color this time!"

"It's grey," Reborn retorted, voice alarmingly droll.

Tsuna's onigiri was held between them; three mostly-rounded shapes of rice, seaweed partially disintegrated into the grossly moist grain. Tsuna's best guess was that he'd cooked the rice too soft, resulting more in porridge-quality grain rather than the appropriate stickiness needed for onigiri. Even though he'd opted for shredded salmon for the filling, some of the fish could be seen every time the shape of the onigiri began to fall apart.

Tsuna had no idea why the rice was grey. Maybe he shouldn't have tried adding sauce? Then he'd started adding salt and sugar in an attempt to balance it out, but now there was this strange grainy quality to the onigiri…

"Come on," Kaneda called out from the front of the class. "The guys are really excited for this!"

It was common for the goods produced in Home Ec to be given to their classmates in Art/Music Appreciation. Given that all of Tsuna's attempts at cooking never actually produced solid results, this would be the first time he'd actually be able to present something.

… _this will definitely kill someone,_ Tsuna thought, taking his plate of onigiri and looking down at it in consideration.

"Dame-Tsuna," Reborn intoned, and Tsuna's intuition rang the warning bells. "Your new assignment is to get someone to eat your onigiri."

Tsuna eyed him in horror. "Reborn, they'll die!" he screeched.

Reborn's flat gaze was that of sadistic expectation.

Tsuna could not hope to argue his point, ushered out by his classmates and back to their original classroom. Most of them avoided looking at him and his creation, but Tsuna could not fault them for that; it was actually kind of eerie that his onigiri didn't have a smell.

Thus it was a shock when the visible gap between himself and his peers was breached. Sasagawa Kyoko, holding her own perfectly-made onigiri, was smiling at him brightly. "Oh, yours look so interesting, Sawada-kun!" she greeted, looking at his onigiri with excitement.

Sasagawa Kyoko was pure, unadulterated sunshine. As a Beta, she didn't have a scent, but her aura was soothing and her every smile was like a bright, sunny day. It was no surprise to any who saw her that she was universally popular in their school. Tsuna never really interacted with her directly, nothing more than morning greetings in the classroom. She was genuinely nice and very pretty, but Tsuna had never entertained the idea of getting to know his classmates.

This had changed a bit, after Reborn entered his life. After Yamamoto, Tsuna found himself regarding his classmates with more open eyes instead of writing them off as quickly as he had before. So now, instead of acknowledging Sasagawa Kyoko's comment with a shrug as he would have done in the past, he actually put forth a bit more effort.

Tsuna _smiled_. "I guess it's like a test of courage?" he suggested in vague self-deprecation. It would take a whole lot of bravery to swallow the abomination, Tsuna figured.

Kyoko giggled, flushing a pretty pink. "That sounds fun! Maybe I'll try one too!"

Tsuna did not want to be responsible for accidentally poisoning the school idol. "I think it'd be best if you didn't," he replied hollowly.

Their group entered their classroom to the sound of enthusiastic cheers. Tsuna found great comfort in Gokudera's thoroughly unimpressed look, practically making a beeline to the unenthusiastic Beta. The moment Gokudera caught sight of him, however, the silver-haired youth shot to his feet with a blinding smile.

"Tenth! Thank you for your hard work!" Gokudera greeted boisterously.

Tsuna stubbornly refused to acknowledge the horrible silence that followed Gokudera's exclamation, followed by a hurried and awkward rush to drown out the atmosphere with meaningless chatter. Recently, his classmates had taken a peculiar attitude in regards to Tsuna and his friends: pretend nothing was happening.

It was…not very successful.

"Oh wow, Tsuna!" Yamamoto grinned, eyeing Tsuna's onigiri. There was another class-wide flinch. "What funny looking onigiri!"

"Shut your mouth, baseball-freak!" Gokudera yelled, roughly shoving the taller boy out of the way. Tsuna really wondered what the two were like when he wasn't around. How was anyone still alive in Art/Music Appreciation?

"It's fine, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna demurred, setting his plate down on the desk. "They really are funny-looking." _Who will even dare to try them?_ Tsuna mused, agonized over Reborn's new assignment. He couldn't help but sigh over it.

Yamamoto cocked his head, curious. "What's up, Tsuna?" he asked.

"Reborn said I have to get someone to eat them," Tsuna replied tiredly. _He'll probably kick my ass if no one does, but seriously, who would-_

"Reborn-san said that?" Gokudera blinked. "That's easy enough, Tenth! As your right-hand, I will happily receive them!"

Tsuna stared at the bomb-happy boy. "….Gokudera-kun," he started gingerly. Oh god, this wasn't a mafia-related thing, was it? How could Tsuna talk Gokudera out of accidental food poisoning without hurting his feelings?

Murota, from a couple rows over, was watching them with a disgruntled expression. "An Alpha should be eating Sawada's food," was the barely-audible grumble. He seemed to be indicating Yamamoto with everything but words.

Naturally, Gokudera flared up. "Tenth's homemade food is wasted on this baseball-idiot!"

Yamamoto frowned. "Tsuna can give food to whoever he wants," he spoke up, tone mediating. His scent was as calming as ever, but there was something else more reminiscent of Hibari in the way Yamamoto was smiling at Murota. He looked down at Tsuna's plate of onigiri in consideration. "There are three though, so we can both have one, Gokudera," Yamamoto offered peaceably.

"But-" Tsuna spoke up, realizing with a dawning sort of dread that he wasn't going to have a hard time finding people to eat his onigiri – he was going to have a hard time convincing his foolhardy friends not to do something so obviously hazardous.

"Hana-chan," Kakei whimpered from across the classroom. "If they eat that, they're going to die!"

"Good," Kurokawa Hana snorted out, chewing on Kyoko's onigiri and refusing to look in Tsuna's direction.

Both Gokudera and Yamamoto were reaching for Tsuna's onigiri now. Tsuna despaired over how abysmal their survival instincts must be – surely every warning bell must be going off just looking at Tsuna's food! Even Tsuna's intuition was screaming at him at this point!

Before he could talk himself out of it, Tsuna smacked both boys' hands away from the plate of food. Hurt attempted to filter out onto both Gokudera's and Yamamoto's faces, but it was aborted as Tsuna scooped all three onigiri and practically shoved it into his own mouth.

…Mud was more palatable.

Tsuna choked a bit, but at the sight of his friends' wide eyes, stubbornly chewed through and swallowed his own abysmal creations. The onigiri, if it could even be called that, slid down his throat like sludge; an unpleasant after-taste, like seaweed left out in the sun, hung in his throat even after Tsuna swallowed the last bite.

Silence engulfed the classroom.

Tsuna raised one hand to his mouth. "….I think I'm going to throw up," he wheezed out.

Several people shrieked as Tsuna keeled over.

Unnoticed in a corner as the classroom devolved into chaos, Bianchi was left holding a plate of her own Poison Special Onigiri, eyeing the fallen Omega in wonder.

* * *

"I understand now," Bianchi said, tears glistening in her eyes.

Reborn stared at her, knowing what was coming next but still not really wanting to hear it. Hearing it meant acknowledging it, acknowledging it meant dealing with it, dealing with it meant coming face to face with the issue he'd been putting off for days now.

"He saved Hayato," Bianchi continued on, emotionally touched. Reborn felt the strain behind his eyes grow exponentially at the sight. "His poison cooking skills need a lot of work, but anyone who protects his family so daringly will become an admirable boss!"

Reborn had just wanted Tsuna to learn how to cook. That was it; no poison cooking, no accidental assassinations. Tsuna's abysmal cooking skills were just another hurdle to work on, and Reborn had only given Tsuna an assignment because he wanted to see who in Tsuna's immediate circle would be willing to even dare try the clearly lethal onigiri.

Gokudera had an instant reaction to any scent of food poisoning courtesy of Bianchi, and Yamamoto had natural instincts and a baseball game coming up. Both should have known better!

Reborn had expected Bianchi to slip in some assassination attempts throughout the school day, of course, and had been interested in seeing how Yamamoto and possibly Hibari reacted to it. She hadn't even gotten a chance, though, because Tsuna had poisoned _himself_ with _his own damn cooking._

Bianchi apparently found that to be a good thing.

"My heart yearns for you every day, Reborn," Bianchi said, hand over her chest. "Which is why I'll be staying here from now on. I can help tutor your student in poison cooking. Anything to help you!"

"Bianchi," Reborn started delicately. "Tsuna will not be an assassin."

"He'll be the Tenth Vongola Boss," Bianchi nodded, wiping tears from her eyes, expression becoming determined. It was painfully obvious to Reborn she had no idea what Reborn was trying to imply; for a Beta female that had been raised since a young age to be an assassin, it was not a surprise Bianchi did not understand what Reborn's real mission was.

But still, she should have figured it out easily enough. Sawada Tsunayoshi was an _Omega_ , for god's sakes.

Reborn glanced behind himself, where Tsuna lay sprawled out on his bed. Reborn had Yamamoto carry the slight boy home; Gokudera would have happily done so, but when Bianchi made herself visible in Tsuna's homeroom, the dynamite-wielder collapsed into a phantom-pained heap. Yamamoto had thankfully made himself useful, carrying both Tsuna and Gokudera back to the Sawada residence, earning himself more than his fair share of swooning fans and terrified looks from onlookers who recognized just who exactly the baseball player was lugging around.

It was not lost on Reborn just what exactly was happening at Namimori Junior High. Why exactly the Disciplinary Committee was involved with Tsuna was a mystery, but getting a straight answer out of Hibari Kyouya would be nigh-impossible. Reborn wasn't going to even waste his time trying to beat answers out of a kid, even if the kid in question essentially ruled over an entire town.

"REBORN!" The bedroom door slammed open as Lambo vaulted inside. On the bed, Tsuna's lax expression became a pained grimace, slowly coming back to consciousness at the ruckus. "PREPARE TO DIE!"

Reborn had been reasonably successful at tutoring Tsuna in various school subjects. With the proper motivation – i.e. a gun to the back of the head – Tsuna became quite diligent with his schoolwork. He even now had study sessions with Gokudera and Yamamoto, which Reborn was still trying to figure out if that counted as a victory for himself or not.

Reborn absently deflected the gunfire with a Leon Shield, then grabbed the rocket launcher from the hands of the Bovino wannabe assassin, firing it at him and sending the child flying out the open bedroom window.

A proper Omega didn't have study sessions with Alphas, after all, but Yamamoto was a prospective Mate and natural hitman. Then again, proper Alphas didn't offer to submit to Omegas, even if the Omega in question did jump off a roof to save them.

Somewhere along the way in tutoring Tsuna to be a valuable Omega mate, Reborn had hit a snag. Tsuna _was_ turning into a valuable Omega mate: he'd have decent grades once Reborn was through with him and now every prospective mate Reborn had identified so far was showing interest in Tsuna.

But it wasn't working out quite how Reborn had expected. Yamamoto's and Hibari's interactions with Reborn's student were proof enough of that.

Tsuna sat up in his bed with a groan. "Wh…What happened? And _what_ is this taste in my mouth?"

Reborn's lips twitched.

Who'd have thought tutoring an Omega could be so _entertaining?_

* * *

Lambo came to with a certain grogginess, features pinched into a disgruntled expression. Shards of glass from where he'd crashed through the window were stuck in his hair, so he stood up on wobbly feet and shook out what he could. He would have started bawling from the myriad of small scratches and light bruising, but the air was- _different_ here. Where ever 'here' was, it was nothing like the Sawada home: most of the light had been choked out by thick curtains, and the air was stifled in an unpleasant smell.

"…Mama?" Lambo called out hesitantly into the dark.

There was no kind voice in answer, but there were footsteps. A sweetness swung into the air, barely detectable under the omnipresent stench, but enough so that Lambo felt himself relax minutely; the smell reminded him vaguely of Tsuna, although it was different, like comparing lollipops to jelly chews.

"…you came in through the window," came a quiet voice. It was softer than even Tsuna's voice when the older boy became scary. Lambo wasn't afraid of it, though, especially as the speaker finally stepped into view.

A boy around Tsuna's age, with wild curls of red hair that framed white-rimmed glasses. He was vastly different from Tsuna, though; his posture was more curled over, thin arms wrapped around himself, his sweet scent so much stronger that it drowned out the overhanging stench when he finally came within a meter of Lambo.

"Who're you?" Lambo demanded of the other male.

The redhead curled more into himself. The bandages wrapped around his arms loosened at the movement, unspooling to reveal heavily bruised arms. The sweet scent sharpened, but Lambo could not understand it; more than anything, the blood soaking into the bandages caught his attention.

What was this?

"The window's broken," the redhead whimpered. "He's going to be so mad. You have to leave."

The older male reached out to Lambo. The last of the bandages fell away, revealing a myriad of marks that made no sense to young Lambo.

"Come on," the redhead urged. "I'll take you home."

Lambo's brows furrowed. "What's wrong with you?" he asked with the ignorant curiosity of a child not understanding what exactly they were looking at. The redhead followed Lambo's wide-eyed gaze to his own mess of injuries, a weak, bitter smile coming to his lips.

The older male rested one hand on his own throat, where his Alpha's Mark branded him in clear view.

"It's not me that's the problem," Irie Shouichi murmured.

* * *

 **End Chapter 9**

* * *

 **A/N** : Daily Life Arc has a few more chapters, because there's just so many damn characters introduced, holy shit.

But yeah, Tsuna is not going to be the only Omega in this story. He is also not going to be the only BAMF&Furious Omega in this story. _Everyone's_ angry, it's just taking awhile to see that LMAO.

 _Notes on Gokudera Hayato:_

-Yes, Gokudera was the one to give the Nezu documents to Hibari. You'll see what he does with the rest of his research as the story progresses.

-Gokudera's character and history will be further expanded on, but like canon, it will take awhile. His character arc was one of the longest for the side characters, after all. Just know that he did grow up in the mafia and it wasn't exactly a positive experience.

 _Notes on First and Second Genders:_

-Obviously sexism exists here. It is also intersectional; for example, Alpha Males generally have more social advantages than Alpha Females. Beta Males and Beta Females are 'secondary' to Alphas, so while they may not enjoy the same advantages their Alpha counterparts do, the fact is they are the builk of the population so they fill out a lot of societal positions. Generally, Beta Males fare better in the workforce than Beta Females, but the disparity isn't as huge as it is between non-Omegas and Omegas. Omega Females fare better than Omega Males, but both have the shortest end of the shittiest stick.

 _Notes on Irie Shouichi:_

-I love Irie.

-Omega Age of Consent is based on Presentation, not their actual age. This is very important when it comes to Irie. And even though I'm the one writing it, it makes me _furious_.

 **Please be kind and drop a review. :)**


	10. There's some of me in you

**A/N:** Let's see how many chapters I can churn out before work drags me back.

 _-There are so many characters introduced in the Daily Life Arc_. I'm screaming on the inside. And yes, I plan for every character in the canon series to be in this one too, EXCEPT for Naito Longchamp. That wasn't even on purpose – I just forgot he actually existed LMAO.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyou Hitman Reborn.

 **Warnings for this chapter in particular:** violence against women (listen - if they try to hit Tsuna, Tsuna is gonna hit back), child marriage, implication of dubious consent and marital rape of a child.

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

" **There's some of me in you."**

 _-Blade Runner (1982)_

* * *

Tsuna was swiftly growing accustomed to the chaos that was now his life, but even so, he tried to cling desperately to his limits. There _had_ to be limits, otherwise the last shreds of his sanity would fly out the window the next time Lambo detonated a grenade in his bedroom again.

So just once, he'd like to walk downstairs in his own home and not find unconscious bodies. That the unconscious body was Gokudera this time was even more alarming. Tsuna's distressed scent at the sight of his silver-haired friend out cold on the couch didn't even phase Reborn, who had managed to get a foothold in Tsuna's unruly brunet tresses.

"Gokudera passes out at the sight of Bianchi," Reborn explained, completely unconcerned.

Tsuna, now hovering over the unconscious Beta, paused in bewilderment. "Why?"

"Conditioned response," Reborn shrugged off. "According to Bianchi, when she first began experimenting with her poison cooking, Gokudera…helped."

The pause was telling. Tsuna wondered if he should find a blanket to put over Gokudera for a moment, Reborn leaping off his head and idling into the kitchen, where Tsuna could hear his mother starting on dinner. There was also some light conversation, and Tsuna realized – with a resigned sort of feeling – that that was definitely the infamous Poison Scorpion Bianchi in there with his mother.

Reborn had essentially explained what had happened in the short window of time Tsuna had been out of commission: Bianchi had given up on assassinating Tsuna ("You're too dame to kill, so she's taking pity on you.") and would now be living in the Sawada home. She'd taken over the guest bedroom, and a hammock like Reborn's had been set up in there for Lambo so that they could have a similar sleeping arrangement.

Tsuna wondered just what this said about his life, that people aiming to kill him ended up sticking with him long-term. As if on cue, Gokudera groaned in pained misery; Tsuna absently patted the Beta boy on the head in a consoling manner. Tsuna made a mental note to thank Yamamoto for bringing him home – the baseball player responded very well to positive reinforcement, Tsuna figured it was an athlete thing – and was just about to enter the kitchen when the heat wrapped around his core flashed.

It was a new feeling. Unlike when Reborn first appeared, or when Mochida threatened him, or even when teenage Lambo dropped to one knee and promised him fealty – Tsuna's skin ran through a light shudder, the hair on the back of his neck on end, movement halted out of a sense of anticipation.

The doorbell rang.

"I got it!" Tsuna announced. Nevermind the fact that Omega should not be answering the door when a stranger comes, in case there was danger and especially if there were perfectly capable Alphas and Betas present. It said quite a lot that his mother only made a sound of acknowledgement and no one else bothered appearing in the kitchen doorway.

Before Tsuna had even reached the doorknob, he could smell it. It was not unpleasant, not by any stretch, but it was strong; it was as if someone had just pushed a plate of strawberries and cream under his nose. Tsuna's hand stilled on the doorknob, knowing what he'd find on the other side of the door but not quite believing it himself.

Omega, naturally, recognize other Omega. Post or pre-Presentation marked the difference; after Presentation, an Omega's scent grew more mature and definitive. Tsuna's was sweet; the Omega on the other side of the door had matured into a fruity sort of sweetness. But there was more, now that Tsuna stood as close as he dared – an earthen quality that no Omega naturally had.

A _mated_ Omega was on the other side of the door.

Tsuna pulled open the door as the bell rang once more.

Lambo's wide-eyed gaze met Tsuna's first. Tsuna blinked down at the Alpha child; his hand was being held, and Tsuna followed the length of the appendage up and into equally startled green eyes framed by a mop of wild curls so red that Tsuna couldn't help but think strawberries really suited the male before him.

"Oh," the boy stuttered out, shock immobilizing him. Tsuna could understand that – finding someone his own age looking back at him wasn't what Tsuna had expected either.

"Oh, u-um," the redhead started haltingly, glancing from Tsuna to the child whose hand he still held. "He said he…lived here?"

The Omega glanced behind Tsuna, as if searching for someone he thought should be there. It took Tsuna a moment to realize – of course he would, because there _should_ be someone there. His Beta mother would have been expected, or perhaps Bianchi or even Reborn. No normal household let an Omega answer the door without some sort of protection.

Gokudera groaned a little more from the couch. Tsuna steeled himself, pulling on a tight smile. "R-Right!" Tsuna managed out, looking at Lambo – who had now detached himself from the redhead. "Yeah, he does, sorry – um-"

"This is the Great Lambo's new minion," Lambo declared to Tsuna's knee. "Sho-chi!"

"Shouichi," the redhead corrected in a tone Tsuna was very familiar with: exasperated resignation. Clearly he'd been trying to correct Lambo for however long they'd been acquainted; Tsuna fully sympathized.

"Lambo, why are you bothering strangers now?" Tsuna sighed, pulling the cow-print child into the home.

"It was that evil Reborn's fault!" Lambo cried out, recognizing Tsuna's Mean Voice. "He tricked me!"

"…he came in through the window," Shouichi spoke up, awkwardly stood at the door. His arms were crossed over his stomach in a distinctly defensive gesture that Tsuna didn't understand. It brought attention to his long sleeves – wasn't he hot? Namimori summers were nothing to scoff at!

Tsuna glanced between the redhead and Lambo. "…the open window?" he asked with dwindling hope.

Shouichi's shake of the head immediately killed that. "I should head back to…" the bespectacled boy trailed off. It was obvious he meant to say "fix it" but seemed to realize he didn't know how.

Tsuna felt a flash of acute sympathy for the other male, but it was swallowed by the overwhelming sense of irritation. "Reborn!" Tsuna snapped out, turning his attention to the kitchen door. "You broke the neighbor's window!"

A Leon mallet came swinging out of the kitchen doorway, hitting Tsuna in the head with pinpoint accuracy and throwing him to the floor. Lambo shrieked and dashed up the stairs, clearly reading the atmosphere: namely, Reborn's oncoming entrance.

"Don't yell, dame-Tsuna," came his home tutor's bland tones. Tsuna sat up, ignoring the way Leon crawled down his form to rejoin the tiny hitman, just to glare at Reborn sullenly.

"Your fight with Lambo destroyed his window," Tsuna accused him, jerking a thumb in Shouichi's direction.

The smell of strawberries and cream had overpowered the entire room now, stilling Reborn's movements. Tsuna watched his tutor in curiosity; through sheer exposure, he'd never seen Reborn act like a stereotypical Alpha when they were together. But was that always true? Tsuna had never seen Reborn interact with any Omega but himself.

"The Bovino famiglia would have already sent someone to repair it," Reborn said dismissively. He remained standing framed in the kitchen doorway, relaxed yet unmoving. Given Shouichi's clearly-riled state, the tiny hitman seemed wary of exacerbating the situation further. It was a responsible decision, all things considered – but the idea that Shouichi was so wary of the baby Alpha was tugging at Tsuna's intuition.

"Just because they fix it doesn't mean it's okay to break it!" Tsuna snapped out, half-turned to send Reborn a chiding look. It was surprising, then, when one pale hand reached out to grasp his arm and tug him back – away from Reborn and closer to a trembling Shouichi, who refused to let Tsuna go. There was an odd hesitation that hovered in the room, Reborn unwilling to move from his position in the kitchen doorway and Shouichi clinging to Tsuna's arm, either using Tsuna's body for protection or doing some half-made attempt to pull Tsuna away from his own home.

"Um, Shouichi-san?" Tsuna asked unsurely.

Shouichi didn't respond, watching Reborn's figure with wide eyes. Tsuna just knew the other boy was afraid, it was obvious from the sharp tang of his scent, and he wondered what he could do to calm him down. Tsuna had never interacted with another Omega so closely before; the Omegas in his school were only caught in fleeting glimpses, nothing more than a passing look before they moved from one place to the next. To not only talk with a fellow Omega for so long, let alone be held so closely, and know that neither of them were related by blood – it was a completely new experience for Tsuna.

But from this close, Tsuna finally saw the Mark scarred into Shouichi's neck.

It was partly hidden by the collar of his shirt, but there was something about an Alpha's Mark that was so distinct. It was an ugly and brutal thing, Tsuna knew – jagged and vivid against Shouichi's pale skin. It made Tsuna think of how it must have been for Shouichi: young Shouichi, trembling just as he was now, his words swallowed in a choked breath as teeth sunk into the vulnerable flesh of his neck.

Tsuna's hands fisted at his sides, eyes still locked on the Mark.

A Bite wasn't a quick thing, wasn't an easy thing; it took time, it took intent. The Alpha had to want to lay the Claim, had to want to permanently disfigure the skin, a physical marker of ownership.

Tsuna knew it hurt.

It hurt.

It hurt.

 _It hurts-_

"Tsu-kun?"

Tsuna took a sharp intake of breath, eyes tearing away from Shouichi's Mark and to the kitchen doorway, where his mother now stood behind Reborn's still form. Her face showed open concern, glancing between her son and the redhead clinging to him. He realized with a start that his free hand had reached up to graze fingertips against the right side of his own neck.

The flame in his chest has winded throughout his body, coiled and ready to spring.

"I-I should go," Shouichi stammered out. He released Tsuna's arm with a nervous jolt, and he turned and fled with a fleeting glance in Tsuna's direction. There was something in Shouichi's expression that Tsuna caught but didn't understand, and then Shouichi turned the corner at the gate and disappeared from sight.

"He's around my age, isn't he? He was Marked," Tsuna said. The tone of his voice frightened even him.

The room fell silent.

"Unfortunate," Reborn remarked solemnly.

Tsuna remembered bandages.

"Unfair," Nana corrected quietly.

* * *

Kyoko was kind. She genuinely liked people, she wanted to help, wanted to succeed. Her kind nature fueled her actions, and in turn, turned the world around her just bit more kind as well.

Even as a small child, Kyoko's kind nature had been prevalent. It's what had urged her to nurse a stray kitten back to health – but just the same, it had been what hurt after she'd found the kitten's carcass being haplessly prodded by two boys. Her kindness had prompted her action, had help sewn the seeds of attachment that two cruel children had ripped out just as the love started to bloom. Ryohei – her loving older brother who would take on the world for her – had seen her tears and wreaked havoc.

Her doting older brother would do anything she asked, so Kyoko was hesitant to ask him anything. Ryohei had a scar on his temple that would never heal, and Kyoko was always reminded of the dead kitten when she saw it.

The world continued on.

Kyoko liked her classmates, but she loved Hana; Hana was strong, and honest, and didn't chide Kyoko for her sweet nature or compassion. They got along so well, years of friendship weaving them irrevocably together – and yet the world still refused to understand. The world saw an Alpha with the strength to lead, and a Beta supporting her in the endeavor. It didn't see the way Hana grew tired of the expectation, refused to allow her to even rely on others, and so all Kyoko could do was watch her community grind her friend into the ground.

Hana began to view the world warily, resigned to her place as leader and everyone else as advantages or disadvantages to her position. Kyoko always thought back to the time when they were little, and Hana had scraped her knee playing tag; she had to be carried home on Ryohei's back, bawling the entire way.

The world continued on.

Kyoko was popular in school. Her smiles made her pretty, her kindness made her naïve; a potent combination for predators seeking out new fancies. Kyoko would make a pretty ornament on anyone's arm, and Mochida Kensuke had hoped that arm would be his. Kyoko was kind because she didn't understand how the world worked, and before she wised up, Mochida would make her his – that was his idea. Kyoko had smiled prettily throughout his advances, but not because she was naïve – but because she knew that if she stopped, he'd realize she wasn't as oblivious as he had hoped, and there was nothing more dangerous than a predator who realized their prey was planning an escape.

Kyoko continued to smile despite the way he crowded into her personal space, continued to support her peers despite the fact that they stood aside and let Mochida run his fingers through her hair, continued to stay out of trouble for her parents despite the fact that they approved of Mochida walking her home even if she had asked him not to, continued to study hard to keep up her grades despite spending hours crying into her pillow.

The world continued on.

Mochida stopped going near her classroom – he avoided their floor altogether if he could. He didn't walk Kyoko home, approach her in any way, didn't call her house or just show up near her favorite cake shops. If Kyoko saw him on campus, his eyes would dart around as if searching for a specter and then he'd head in the opposite direction.

Hana stopped grinding her teeth whenever a classmate looked to her for guidance – because there was no time to seek an Alpha's leadership when Gokudera Hayato was threatening a teacher with bodily harm. Hana instead had to pretend to be above everything, despite the new lightness to her shoulders as everyone realized there was nothing anyone could do to stop their class's inevitable descent into weirdness.

Kyoko still studied but didn't have to worry about failing because Nezu-sensei didn't approve of something she'd said or done that day. Nezu-sensei was gone, the teachers left floundering after Hibari had discovered the fraudulent paperwork that had gotten Nezu hired in the first place. There was no time to smooth things over, not with the Disciplinary Committee apparently going through the administration's documentation with a fine-toothed comb.

Kyoko didn't mind the changes, but not because she was oblivious or naïve. No, Kyoko didn't mind the changes because _she wanted the change in the first place_.

Kyoko didn't have to worry about walking home anymore. She could walk with friends or by herself, could stop at her favorite cake shop without having to look over her shoulder, could do something as simple as walk down the school corridors without having to steel herself for confrontation.

Kyoko didn't have to stand behind Hana anymore – she could stand beside her. Hana would turn to her now, would ask Kyoko for help, would seek her out for guidance when their classmates became too much: when Gokudera ended up lecturing their substitute Maths teacher, when Yamamoto fell asleep in class, when a tiny child in a cow-print onesie crashed through their classroom window and had to be carried out by Sawada.

Sawada Tsunayoshi was another change Kyoko appreciated. The boy had been so alone before; he'd shied away from any interaction, refused to get to know his classmates, never responding with more than a cursory greeting and a glance. He was a marvel, with his large amber eyes, petite frame, sweet scent – he was widely acknowledged as cute, though pitiful. That had always seemed so strange to Kyoko because whenever she thought of Sawada Tsunayoshi – she'd never thought of him as someone in need of pity.

But the world was always quick to point out that was because she was too kind. How could she not see how pitiful he was? An air-headed Omega, slight in frame, with no strengths – physical or academic – to speak of? It wasn't his fault, of course – Omega just weren't capable of the kind of physical or academic rigor demanded of Betas and Alphas. It was just pitiful, is all.

The world continued on.

"Oh," she starts at breakfast, smile wide and innocent on her face. Her father is already gone to work, her mother is in the kitchen frying up extra food because Ryouhei eats enough for a small army. Her doting older brother is seated across from her at the table, and though he had been eating enthusiastically, he pauses and turns his attention to Kyoko.

"I think I know someone who would be a good addition to the boxing club," she says to her brother. There's a clatter from the kitchen as her mother drops whatever she'd been holding, having heard Kyoko speak the forbidden words. Already, Ryouhei's eyes are shining, his grip on his chopsticks breaking them cleanly in half.

"An extreme friend of Kyoko's?" he asks, voice already raising in excitement.

Kyoko nods. "He's very extreme," she agrees. Her mother pokes her head out the kitchen doorway, staring at Kyoko with wide eyes from behind Ryouhei's back. "He even made extreme onigiri in Home Ec and ate them himself!"

Ryouhei looks confused but still excited about the prospect of 'extreme onigiri'. Her mother, on the other hand, is beginning to shake her head with plain horror eclipsing her features. Her Beta mother would of course know that only Beta girls and Omegas would be in Kyoko's Home Ec class, and the idea of subjecting anyone from either category to the chaotic hurricane that is her brother was enough to make her parents weep.

"His name is Sawada Tsunayoshi," she informs her brother. "He's in my class."

Sawada, with his large amber eyes, staring out at his classmates as if waiting for them to argue the presence of Gokudera and Yamamoto at his side. Sawada, with his thin frame and sweet scent, keeping up with them during PE because Reboyama-sensei was watching. Sawada, with his standing as an Omega, not caring about the bewildered masses left in his wake.

Because the world had seen 'Omega' before they'd seen 'Sawada Tsunayoshi', and they were desperately trying to keep up.

Change was coming. Everyone knew it, whether they chose to admit it or not; and once it finally swept Namimori up into the windstorm, everyone would have to decide where they would fall. They could fight it or they could accept it – but the one thing they could not do was ignore it.

And Kyoko knew exactly what she was going to do.

* * *

Reborn makes a point of walking Tsuna to school most days. Tsuna generally doesn't mind, as the baby hitman's presence was overshadowed by whatever argument Gokudera and Yamamoto were having (or, more accurately, whatever verbal lashing Gokudera was doling out, aimed solely at Yamamoto for no discernible reason aside from breathing), and the only thing Tsuna had to focus on was making sure they made it to school on time.

This morning was a bit different; Gokudera had sent an apologetic message just before breakfast explaining he had some 'extracurricular work' to do and wouldn't be at school until later in the day, and Yamamoto was once again at baseball practice. Tsuna had been walking to school alone long before Reborn had come into his life, so doing so again wasn't anything unusual, but it was a bit lonely after having enjoyed the company of his two new friends.

Granted, he would much prefer that to what he was currently experiencing.

"Would you be my friend?"

The Alpha's heavy breaths are evident of excitement and anticipation of a positive answer, body trembling with barely-restrained glee. The scent is light, customary of a pre-presentation youth, smelling vaguely of mint. Refreshing, if a bit…caustic – which readily fit the strange girl blocking their path to school.

Miura Haru, the Alpha girl who lived in the house whose fence Reborn often trotted over.

Miura Haru, who'd jumped in front of them, introducing herself to Reborn, eagerness oozing from her every pore.

"Sure," Reborn replied easily.

Tsuna tried to continue walking. She was, for better or for worse, speaking directly to Reborn – which freed Tsuna from interacting with her personally. As far as Tsuna was concerned, Reborn was more than capable of taking care of himself, and despite how weird this Miura Haru was – his intuition had not registered her as a threat. Perhaps she just really liked babies.

"Can you… Can you hug me? Like this?"

Tsuna paused, glancing back. Haru was giving herself a pretty tight hug as an example of what she wanted, and she was pretty well-flushed now, likely over-excited Reborn had agreed to friendship. Still, the suddenness of the approach and the forwardness of the requests were more than off-putting to Tsuna.

Reborn wasn't a baby, but it's not like Haru knew that. Alpha or not, she'd just asked what she thought was a small child for intimate physical contact even though they'd just met. Surely at this age, she should know there are limits to what is appropriate?

"Reborn, we're going to be late," Tsuna spoke up.

Reborn turned beady black eyes on him knowingly. Tsuna had just essentially given him an out, even when one wasn't requested and certainly not needed. The Tsuna of just a few months ago would not have bothered, instead continuing his walk to school without interjecting himself between them.

"Hahi!" Haru crowed, spinning around to pin Tsuna with a wide-eyed stare. "You're Reborn-chan's brother, right?"

"No," both Tsuna and Reborn responded immediately.

"I'm his tutor," Reborn explained in a droll tone. "It's my job to raise Tsuna as the 10th boss of the Vongola mafia."

Haru completely froze, earnest expression vanishing from her face. This was all the warning Tsuna got before her pheromones flashed, a subtle change that would have gone ignored by adults, but to Tsuna – was essentially like lighting a warning flare.

"You've gone too far!" Haru screeched, closing the distance between herself and Tsuna, righteous anger lighting her steps. "Babies are angels with pure white hearts! What horrible things have you been teaching Reborn-chan?!"

There was nothing about her that Tsuna found alarming. After facing dynamite and people literally throwing themselves off rooftops, having an Alpha yell at him about ruining Reborn's purity was absurd to the point of comical, and Tsuna couldn't rouse much more of a reaction aside from trying to smother a snort of laughter at the idea of Reborn being considered something as sweet as an angel.

That was, until Haru fisted the front of his shirt.

There's a particular level of physicality that Tsuna was used to. For years, the only person who had breached his personal boundaries was his mother, and even then, it was only fleeting touches or simply close proximity. His mother seemed to know Tsuna didn't want to be touched constantly, coddled and comforted for things his peers and teachers thought he needed.

The imperial rule Hibari held over school enforced a code of conduct that did not condone physical intimacy. Tsuna was left untouched through hours of schooling, kept under near constant supervision by both his teachers and his classmates to ensure there would be no rumors spread of anything illicit.

Even now, with Gokudera and Yamamoto beside him most of the time, their touches were still reserved; sometimes Yamamoto would clap a friendly hand on his back, or Gokudera would crowd close to Tsuna's side for either conversation or to conspire – but there was a reserved element to their intimacy, unwilling to force physical contact on Tsuna.

Haru was very close, so close they practically breathed the same air; the grasp she had on his shirt pulled him in even closer. An Alpha's strength, an Alpha's smell, and the thick contempt that lay naked in her eyes – _it was enough._

Tsuna abruptly kneed her in the groin.

An Alpha she may be, but Haru was clearly on the more slender side of the scale, and she fell to the ground frightfully quick. Tsuna blinked down at her, surprised she had gone down so easily; given that he'd had to defend himself against the likes of the kendo club captain Mochida and hellish deity Hibari, he had expected a bit more of a fight.

"If your aim is to incapacitate, you should strike major weak points first," Reborn advised him.

Tsuna cast him a glower on principle. "She's down, isn't she? What does it matter if I hit her groin or her shins first?"

Reborn didn't say anything, face impassive, but Tsuna got the impression that Reborn was satisfied by his counter. Tsuna tried not to think too much about that, a silent thrill stealing up his spine as he turned back to Haru – who was crouched before him, making a small keening noise that honestly made Tsuna feel a bit bad.

"Sorry," he mumbled to her, remorse clear in his voice. "I just…wasn't, uh…" _Wasn't expecting you to go down so easily_. "I mean-"

"EXTREME!"

The excited holler came from further down the street, but the ear-bleeding volume of it made it seem a lot closer. Tsuna was caught off-guard once again, head whipping up to see a white-haired teen barreling towards them at a speed that was somehow sending up dust despite being made on pavement.

Tsuna had no time to react, the white-haired male having reached him and clasping hands on his shoulders in a forceful display of camaraderie. The other boy was fairly vibrating with energy, a wide grin stretched on his lips that reminded Tsuna more of the crazed look Yamamoto got in his eyes when he held a baseball.

"One hit and you've triumphed over your competitor! And you even stayed back to ensure their health and well-being – what great sportsmanship! I've heard all about you from my sister!" the older boy bellowed in his face. "You are an EXTREME warrior! Join our club, Sawada Tsuna!"

No scent, just an intense aura of enthusiasm – the boy was a Beta. "I'm Sasagawa Ryouhei, captain of the Boxing Club! MY MOTTO IS 'EXTREME'!"

 _What incredible passion,_ Tsuna thought, ears ringing.

"So your name is… Sawada Tsuna…"

Tsuna's attention was reclaimed by Haru, who finally rose up on unsteady knees to give him a baleful look. "I'll never forgive you…for corrupting a pure innocent soul like Reborn-chan…" she managed out, her pheromones flaring.

" _Innocent?"_ Tsuna echoed, pointing an incredulous finger at Reborn. "He just gave me fighting advice because I didn't hit you hard enough!"

It was then Tsuna realized Reborn had at some point donned an elephant-shaped hat and boxing gloves, which was jarring enough an image in its own right – but then Ryouhei snapped to attention, gazing at Reborn with wide, adoring eyes.

"Master PaoPao!" Ryouhei yelped. "You're in Japan?!"

"Hahi?!" Haru cried out at the same time. "Where did Reborn-chan go?!"

Tsuna had never so keenly wanted to go to school before. At least there, he was spared the sheer incomprehensibility that seemed to affect everyone who interacted with his self-appointed hitman tutor. Things only worsened when he caught sight of Sasagawa Kyoko turning the corner, looking rather flushed, but then her eyes landed on Ryouhei and then Tsuna – causing her to light up in visible joy.

"Good morning, Tsuna-kun!" she greeted, reaching them with hurried steps. The smile on her face was innocent and sweet, which did not fit the current atmosphere at all: Ryouhei punching the air in a display of power to Reborn, Haru lamenting 'Reborn-chan's' absence with unshed tears, and Tsuna standing stock-still between the two extremes like a frightened deer.

"Good morning, Kyoko-san," Tsuna replied automatically, the casual address falling a bit too easily from his lips. Maybe if he concentrated on Kyoko, he could pretend _everything else_ wasn't happening. Kyoko was safe, Kyoko was normal; Kyoko didn't rant at him about child-rearing or yell in his face about joining boxing clubs that Tsuna knew, for a fact, did not accept Omega students.

"I bet Reborn-chan ran away because of you!" Haru declared, leveling an accusing finger in Tsuna's direction. "You're a bad influence on him!"

Tsuna stared at her. After a moment, he decided this was a battle better ignored than fought, and completely ignored her as he turned to Ryouhei, who was gushing about boxing and Muay Thai to a rather indifferent 'Master PaoPao'.

"Don't ignore Haru!" the Alpha girl cried out.

"You move any closer to me and I'll aim for the shins this time," Tsuna cut back in a low tone.

"True warriors can communicate with their fists!" Ryouhei declared, interjecting himself between Tsuna and Haru like a bloodthirsty referee, utterly divorced from reality.

The expression on Haru's face went from menacing to frightened, realizing Ryouhei fully intended to have them spar in the street. Tsuna would have corrected her assumption that Tsuna was completely okay with brawling in the street, but then she turned a disconcertingly resolute stare on him.

"This isn't over, Sawada Tsuna!" Haru cried out, giving him one last glare before storming off.

Kyoko stepped up to Tsuna's side, smile disarming as they both watched Haru beat a hasty retreat. "Oh, was she a friend of yours, Tsuna-kun?" she asked brightly, doing a damn good impression of personified sunshine. Tsuna would have wondered about Kyoko's thought process regarding friendship, but then remembered that Gokudera had essentially did a complete 180 regarding Tsuna in under an hour, without a whisper of warning to their classmates.

Tsuna decided it was better to pick his battles.

"We're going to be late for school," he said.

* * *

" _You're an adult now. Be proud."_

Shouichi had been twelve when his mother told him those words. The guitar his older sister had bought him for his birthday was still a bit too big for his petite stature at that time, and it had rested heavily in his grip as his inexperienced fingers plucked at the strings. He'd only had it for a short while, and the songs he'd been trying to learn were still too difficult even when playing them had his full attention, and it was even worse when he was focused solely on keeping the rest of the world out of mind.

The jarring thrum of the chords kept his attention away so that he didn't have to watch his mother pack a small suitcase with trembling hands. She was packing his nicest clothes, full of bright colors and needlessly loud designs, graphics dominating a fair amount of the shirts within. The suitcase itself had the sticker of his favorite cartoon character, and it stood out against the bright yellow color. A child's suitcase, full of a child's clothes.

But Shouichi's body was no longer that of a child.

His scent hung strong in his closed bedroom and grew ever stronger with every folded article of clothing his Beta mother tucked into his suitcase. Her every calm, measured word was offset by her shaking limbs and inability to meet his eyes. The knot of nausea in his stomach grew as well, and he curled around his guitar.

"Mom…" he managed out.

She did not turn around. She was zipping his luggage closed.

"Satoru-san is a good Alpha," she said.

Shouichi knew only a little about the Alpha Watanabe Satoru. He was the son of his father's boss, and they'd only met a handful of times at company parties. He had started a mid-level job at his father's company last spring. He'd complimented Shouichi's hair once, twirling the curly strands of red between his fingers. He was 12 years older than Shouichi.

"Mom, my robot," Shouichi spoke again. It was a blocky, garish thing – but fully-functional, and he'd built it himself from spare parts he'd salvaged from dumpster diving. His older sister had covered for him every time he came home with a new part, and his mother had sighed but occasionally he'd catch her smiling at it with open marvel.

"You don't need it. It's a child's toy," she replied sharply.

Only children played with toys. Only children got dirty when they scavenged for spare tech in garbage bins, only children had a curfew that needed to be followed so that their older siblings would lie to cover their late returns, only children cried and screamed when faced with something that terrified them.

" _You're not a child,"_ his mother told him.

("He's just a kid!" his sister screamed. She was an Alpha, so their parents took the time to sit her down and explain things to her.)

" _He'll be good to you,"_ his father told him quietly.

("Be a good Omega," his Alpha ordered him, voice sickly-sweet. Shouichi's stomach was tied up in so many knots that he felt like a coil of barbed wire had replaced his intestines.)

The rules to being a good Omega are simple when taught in class: keep a tidy home, breed a happy family, submit to your Alpha's command, be virtuous and conscientious to honor your Alpha's claim. If Shouichi and his fellows followed these rules, they would be happy Omegas.

If Shouichi kept a tidy home, he would be a happy Omega. So when he accidentally dropped a dish, or forgot to pick up after his Alpha, or didn't iron the laundry perfectly – then it only made sense that his Alpha punish him.

If Shouichi bred happy offspring, he would be a happy Omega. So when ongoing stress and anxiety resulted in a delicate state of health that was not conducive to conceiving children – then it only made sense that his Alpha punish him.

If Shouichi submitted to his Alpha's command, then he would be a happy Omega. So when he refused his Alpha's advances after he came home drunk – then it only made sense that his Alpha punish him.

If Shouichi kept being virtuous and conscientious in order to honor his Alpha's claim, then he would be a happy Omega. So when his Alpha thought otherwise – then it only made sense that his Alpha punish him.

" _Stop crying,"_ his Alpha told him. _"You're not a child."_

Lambo's abrupt intrusion into Shouichi's life had been startling, but in the end, changed nothing. Shouichi had returned to his Alpha's home that night to find what the strange Alpha baby had said was true; a construction crew had been hard at work replacing the damaged window frame. The crew had given him polite nods and a wide berth, the majority of them Beta males but a solitary Alpha had been surveying their progress from outside the homestead. Shouichi knew this was because his own Alpha was not home to allow the other Alpha entrance.

They were done quicker than Shouichi had thought possible, everything almost exactly the same as before Lambo's sudden entrance. They'd even gone so far as to clean up the debris, which had saved Shouichi the time and effort.

After the construction crew had left, Shouichi changed clothes, wary of wearing anything that would have hinted at being elsewhere when he should have been at home preparing dinner. His Alpha had returned home hours later, never realizing what had transpired while he'd been gone. Shouichi would never tell him, this rush of keeping a secret the only thing to bring him some measure of control over his life in the past two years.

Now, he ran shaking fingers through his wild curls, trying for some semblance of neatness, but refocused on his task of preparing dinner. He'd been late about starting it tonight, having been distracted by a strange package that had been delivered to his doorstep. He'd put it in the bedroom, tucked under the desk and out of the way, covered by some folded blankets. If he made something relatively simple for dinner, then perhaps it'd be finished in time and his Alpha wouldn't punish him for "slacking on his responsibilities."

An hour passed, then two. The fried fish, rice, and bowl of miso soup grew colder with every passing minute. Shouichi put plastic over them, debated putting them in the fridge but decided it would be easier to just pop them back in the toaster oven once his Alpha returned home. Another hour passed; Shouichi picked at his rice and fish but didn't dare start eating it. His stomach rumbled unpleasantly. Another hour came and went.

Finally, just past 11 o'clock, the front door rattled open. Shouichi jumped from his seat at the table, running another hand through his wild locks, then tugging his shirt back into place. There was a low rumble, inarticulate from this distance, but Shouichi was too scared to move from his place in the kitchen; instead, he assumed that was his Alpha's attempt at a greeting, and he called back his own customary 'welcome home!'

His Alpha's large stature filled the doorway. The smell was always the first thing Shouichi noticed: pungent and thick, like freshly-turned earth on a hot summer day. It was also doused with the heavy smell of alcohol, and indeed, his Alpha staggered into the kitchen, intoxication weighing down his steps.

"I made dinner," Shouichi squeaked out, frozen in place beside his chair. "Are you hungry, Satoru-san?"

His Alpha stared at him, still standing (blocking) the doorway. Alcohol was dangerous; if he drank too much, his Alpha would become drowsy and pass out. He'd be unbearable the following morning with a hangover, but at least Shouichi would be spared in the interim. But if he was drunk and conscious, his Alpha was at his most dangerous – all violence, no restraint.

"C'mere," his Alpha growled out.

Shouichi's stomach tied in another knot; steel wool shredded his intestines to ribbons. "I-I haven't eaten yet… I was waiting for you…" he tried, voice quiet. He turned his eyes to the floor, tried to stop his body from trembling.

"Why're you bitchin'?" his Alpha garbled out. Heavy footsteps crossed the distance between them; the wire coil in his stomach turned ice cold. "Just c'mere – fuck, stop whimpering!"

Shouichi hadn't even realized he was making the sound and cut himself off abruptly. His Alpha grabbed him by the chin, roughly pulling his head up, the hold and angle uncomfortable and forcing Shouichi to his tiptoes. He let out another cry, but his Alpha only sniffed disdainfully down at him.

"Stop crying," the older male growled. "You're not a child."

Shouichi knew that. That's why he never got to bring his handmade robot, that's why he never got to practice playing guitar, that's why he's spent the past 2 years crying into his pillow after his Alpha is done with him and falls asleep. His robot is long gone now; his guitar is in pieces after his Alpha decides the noise is annoying; he learns to cry, so silent and still that he does not disturb the male beside him.

It's less than an hour but feels like a lifetime. Once thick, drunken snores finally emit from the body trapping him, Shouichi dares to crawl his way slowly out of bed. Every movement sends spikes of pain seemingly throughout every tortured vein in his body, but he keeps his cries silent.

He stands in his Alpha's bedroom for a long moment and just thinks. Thinks about the cow-printed child he'd helped return home, who would have been lost without him; thinks about the young Omega he'd met at the doorway, who had answered the door without fear, who talked bitingly to the strange baby Alpha in his home. Shouichi thinks about that Omega's unmarked skin, his pre-Presentation body with its undeveloped scent.

Shouichi thinks about that child Omega.

Shouichi thinks about himself, an adult Omega.

Shouichi thinks about how close they are in age.

There's a small crate crammed into the corner of the room, pushed under the desk and out of the way. It's addressed to Watanabe Satoru, meant to be opened and appreciated by the drunk slumbering in the bed behind him. Shouichi's name is nowhere on the package; indeed, Shouichi's name isn't anywhere in the home. Every letter is addressed to Watanabe Satoru – even though it's Shouichi who budgets, even though it's Shouichi who maintains the home, even though it's Shouichi who helped little Lambo return home unharmed.

But Shouichi is just an extension of Watanabe Satoru. No, not an extension – a possession. Everything Shouichi does, is done in his Alpha's name. It doesn't matter that Shouichi had yet to change his family name, it doesn't matter that Shouichi slips letters into his family's mailbox whenever he can in the hope that his Alpha sister would see them and would argue for ownership of Shouichi, it doesn't matter that she never does. It does not matter, because Shouichi does not matter.

If Shouichi was a good Omega, he would be happy.

He opens the box with trembling hands, and doesn't know why his limbs shake as they do – fear of the unknown? Or perhaps, with the child he'd buried inside himself years ago, they shake in anticipation of what he may find inside?

Multicolored toy weapons greet his wide eyes. They're obnoxiously bright colors – purples, and greens, and reds, blues, yellows. There are edibles packed tightly in, addressed to Shouichi's Alpha in particular; the rest of the non-perishables are meant for little Lambo, according to the note inside. Toy bazooka shells weigh heavily in his hands as he picks them up and sets them to the side, and only when he sifts through the multicolored ammunitions does Shouichi realize the only thing childish within the box are the colors.

The weapons are real. The bullets, and the bazooka shells, the pasta and bottles of olive oil, the two bottles of expensive wine – all real. Someone had sent an Alpha child a legitimate weapons stash. Shouichi remembers the amber eyes of the strange Omega child that answered the door of that home. The exasperated tone he used when reprimanding an Alpha, as if destruction were par for the course.

Shouichi remembers that he had not been afraid.

A lime-green pistol sits near the bottom of the crate.

"Stop crying," Shouichi murmurs to himself, wrapping trembling fingers around the handle of the gun. _"You're not a child."_

The pistol is the same color as the little robot Shouichi had built all those years ago, a toy meant for the child he had been. But he's not a child anymore, and no longer meant to be playing with toys.

A single shot rings out.

* * *

 **A/N** : I wanted something in this chapter to be fairly light-hearted but all the characters conspired against me. T_T Next chapter should be the last for this story's equivalent to the Daily Life Arc (unless it gets too long, so it might be the second-to-last), but then we can finally enter the Kokuyou Arc and get the actual plot of this thing rolling.

 _Notes on Miura Haru:_

-Her introduction isn't actually finished, but I'm trying to tie her in more with other characters like Ryouhei, Hana, and Kyoko this time around. (Friendship between girls is so important!) But yes, Haru is an ALPHA.

-I toned down Haru's violence in her introduction (which was played for laughs in the manga) because even as baby-crazy as she is, she's not gonna pummel Omega!Tsuna. She'll be fleshed out more next chapter.

-By the way, I was really creeped out by Haru when she first premiered in the manga. I like children too, but if some girl approached my niece the way Haru did, it would set off all my inner alarm bells. There's socially-awkward, and then there's _fucking creepy._ If you're asking a child you just met for a hug, their parent/guardian has every right to be like HELL NO.

 _Notes on Sasagawa Ryouhei:_

-So ideas of 'chivalry' are a bit different in this universe, obviously, given the multiple genders. So Ryouhei's 'men can communicate through fists!' mentality is more all-encompassing; what's considered the 'fairer' sex would be Omegas first and foremost, and depending on local culture, Beta girls. I substituted Ryouhei's "real men" usage with "true warriors" since it's more gender neutral.

-Why is Ryouhei seemingly cool with letting Omega!Tsuna into the Boxing Club? Because Ryouhei believes warrior spirit trumps gender any day. (Like in canon, when he tries to get teen!I-Pin to join the boxing club.) That means he really does want Tsuna in his Boxing Club, and he's just too stupid to realize that the Boxing Club does in fact have rules against that, as Tsuna notes to himself.

 _Notes on Irie Shouichi:_

-I was taken by surprise – a lot of you had really interesting ideas on how Irie would play out in this story! I really, really liked some of those ideas too!

-Irie does have a very important purpose in the narrative, and yes – this also involves Byakuran. (By the way, 'Watanabe Satoru' is an OC and is honestly not that important to the overall plot aside from how he affects Irie.) The thing with Irie though – how important he is takes awhile to show. Since we're still in the Daily Life Arc, like in canon, Irie's much more involved in the plot when we enter the Future Arc.

-Good catch on the importance of 'Alpha surrogates' too! ;) You'll see how that works out later.

 _Notes on Byakuran:_

- _HahahAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!_

-Oh my god, you'll see. I promise, Byakuran… Byakuran is coming.

 _ **-But Mukuro is first.**_

* * *

 _ ** **Please be kind and drop a review. ;)****_


	11. We Keep Order

**A/N** : I've given up on asserting how many chapter are left until we get to the Kokuyou Arc because it just feels like I'm lying now. But! We're getting closer… Mukuro, wait for me~

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn.

* * *

 **Chapter 11  
**

 **"That's what we do here.  
**

 **We keep order."**

 _-Blade Runner 2049_

* * *

Blood and brain matter had pooled into the sodden pillow and bedsheets, soaked into the mattress, and spattered onto the floor. The bullet itself had blasted a path past soft flesh and hard bone, through and out the thalamus, then popped out the other side of the Alpha male's skull and through the wooden bedframe until it met the end of its trajectory in the floorboards of the bedroom.

Death had been instantaneous. Watanabe Satoru had been sleeping one moment and was dead in the next with a single pull of the trigger.

Kyouya's eyes slid from the gore-stained bed to the assorted members of the Disciplinary Committee already beginning to clean up. They were the older counterparts to the DC of Namimori Middle, most former yakuza having found their lives reformed at the business end of his tonfas.

The Disciplinary Committee of Namimori had a primary function: preserve the order of Namimori. This tenant had necessitated an increase in numbers, which lead to a takeover of local yakuza groups to either be dismantled or absorbed into Hibari's follower count. While the core members of the DC were former thugs still in attendance at Namimori Middle, there was more than a fair amount of henchmen that were adults and operated outside of schoolgrounds.

All members were required to perform patrols of Namimori, both for safety and for intelligence-gathering. Any incidents considered to be suspicious in nature were brought to Kusakabe, who in turn informed Kyouya if they proved to be important. Kyouya himself made a point of having a say in the setup of patrol routes, and though all routes covered nearly all of Namimori proper – there was one section of this small town that the DC had been explicitly told not to interfere with.

Only Kyouya knew this exempted area was the area within a few kilometers of the Sawada residence.

The Watanabe home fell within these parameters, so when patrol heard what sounded like a gunshot within the area, they had immediately notified Kusakabe, who reported it to Hibari. Through witness reports by DC members and neighbors peeking out their windows to try to ascertain the source of the commotion, Kyouya had been able to narrow down the general area of where the sound may have originated from.

The dead body visible through the bedroom window had been a pretty clear sign that the sound came from the Watanabe home. The young Omega herbivore crumpled on the floor, with his own vomit and the murder weapon resting scant feet away, was another obvious clue. So too were the myriad of bruises and still-healing injuries littered over the herbivore's thin frame.

Kyouya would have to confirm it, verify the clear indications of prolonged abuse. It was not uncommon for Alpha-Omega pairs with such an age difference, and though the smell of it had faded significantly in the aftermath, Kyouya could still discern traces of intoxication and sexual intercourse. There was an open crate left near the desk, packed with a strange assortment of firearms, ammunition, and perishables, all from a 'Bovino famiglia'. Food was one thing – but to smuggle these kinds of weapons into Namimori and get them into the hands of a middle manager's child-mate was unheard of in peaceful Namimori.

Irie Shouichi had been a sight unto himself, all wide viridian eyes and trembling pale form, nude and covered in the blood of the mate he'd murdered. Frightened little animals could become deadly in an instant – Irie had proven that when he followed along with the likes of Sawada Tsunayoshi rather than what his community expected of him.

Watanabe Satoru will be reported missing later, after failing to return home after a night of drinking. No one will be ever be sure where the Alpha male had gone, but people would whisper that perhaps he'd found someone else and eloped; perhaps he'd been dissatisfied with his work and left town; perhaps he'd owed money to disreputable people and gotten in over his head. Eventually, a week or so later, someone will claim to have seen him heading out towards Tokyo. Someone else will claim to have spotted him in Nagano.

The truth will never be so clear cut. Kyouya would ensure it.

For now, Kyouya returned home. It was nearing 6:30 AM – too early to head to school, too late to go back to sleep, and pointless to make more rounds and arouse suspicion. He would check in with Kusakabe later, take a nap during the day, and then seek out Gokudera Hayato after the school day ended to see what the silver-haired herbivore knew about this 'Bovino family'.

The courtyard included in the Hibari estate is extensive and peaceful. It obscured the neighboring houses and hid the public roads from view; a gravel path led up to the otherwise humble 2-story home, a traditional Japanese house that had been renovated with modern fixtures. It was never considered crowded, because for the past several years, there had only been two occupants.

This morning, there were more.

She's a small thing, not even quite to Kyouya's knees, and it seemed like her head was half her total height. She was dressed in a red cheongsam-style shirt and dark shorts, tiny little house slippers on her feet. A single black braid pulled all of her hair back and showcased a prominent bald forehead, round cheeks rosy and eyes practically slitted closed. The smell of breakfast served hot and steaming on the table covered any scent she may have had, and as Hibari drew closer, he easily picked up that she had no scent – a young Beta.

None of this explained her presence.

"你好-" Her words stopped abruptly when she caught sight of his face. Her already rosy cheeks darkened in a much deeper blush, and then the Pinzu-Timed Super Explosion began its countdown on the child's head.

Kyouya connected the dots for the full picture: the child assassin known as the Human Bomb was in his dining room, and she was about to explode. He swiftly picked her up and – instead of striking her out the window with his tonfa, which he briefly considered – then aimed for the sliding door that opened into the inner courtyard before pelting her up into the air with as much strength as he possibly could.

The resulting explosion blew a strong gust of wind throughout the residence, knocking over a few yard decorations and sending loose leaves raining over the yard. Kyouya didn't bother to check on the child – if she was using the Pinzu-Timed Explosion, she should be strong enough to make her way back to the house and wouldn't have suffered any injuries from her own attack.

"My, my," a smooth tenor admonished teasingly from behind Hibari's back. "That was rather rude, Kyouya."

Kyouya turned abruptly, glowering at the tall male leaned comfortably against the doorway separating the dining area from the kitchen. Wild black locks of hair were swept out of icy blue eyes, which were gazing at Kyouya with the kind of soft fondness reserved only for those of close relations. He was smiling and relaxed in the face of Hibari's irritation, as he always was – even if the dark bags under his eyes were present as usual. Kyouya didn't know what upset him more: the seemingly permanent state of exhaustion or the never-ending cheer.

Hibari Reo, his father, seemed to exist only to agitate him.

"That is the student of _that annoyance_ ," Kyouya ground out. "Why is she here?"

His father chuckled at the acidic words. "Now, you shouldn't speak about family that way. Your cousin has his redeeming qualities," the man returned candidly.

"That annoyance is not my cousin."

Reo stepped fully into the dining room, taking a seat at the table. Everything about him seemed designed to be the exact opposite of Hibari Sasako; he was slimmer and elegant, with smooth skin and gentle features. No body odor, no pheromones – a Beta through and through – and yet, it was as if Reo's presence was saturated into the very fibers of the home.

"First cousin once removed," Reo corrected himself with that same teasing smile.

Kyouya ignored the implied admonishment with the ease of long practice. "Why is she here?" he repeated.

"Her master sent her here to train," Reo replied. "He thinks it's important that I-Pin-chan gain experience through discipline."

Kyouya doesn't think his _first cousin once removed_ has any right to be sending his students to Japan, much less Namimori – the domain of the Hibari. His extended family loved to test their limits, though, especially after Sasako had re-opened relations to them. Now Kyouya had to deal with _that annoyance_ , but he was going to draw the line at rearing _that annoyance's_ young.

"She can't stay here," Kyouya said.

Reo didn't appear to have heard, motioning for Kyouya to take the open seat across from him at the table. Kyouya noted there were even several dishes of dimsum on the table alongside the otherwise traditional Japanese foods, and he took a seat across from his father with no little irritation.

"You're in quite a mood this morning," Reo noted mildly. "Rough night of patrols?"

Kyouya didn't answer.

The older male picked at his food, swift and small bites that gave reason to that delicate frame. Hibari wished he'd eat more, wished he'd rest more; it was frustrating, being treated like a child by a man who could barely take care of his own health. Little animals needed to be taken care of, but sometimes they were too stubborn to accept aide. Everything about the man was gentle, the only truth he'd ever dare share preferred to be shown through action rather than words. It's the reason Kyouya's mother had fallen in love with him, after all.

"She can't stay," Kyouya repeated. The last thing he would tolerate was a crowd in his own home.

Reo's smile never faded. "So stubborn, Kyouya… But if you're so certain, then I'll send I-Pin-chan to a friend," he conceded.

Kyouya finished eating just as the small figure of I-Pin stumbled in through the back door, loose leaf debris stuck in her small braid and clothes lightly singed. Kyouya glanced back at his father, who was watching the tiny girl approach with a small, amused smile.

Kyouya stood with a flutter of his gakuran, making to grab a plate of shrimp dimsum before he halted at his father's words. "Oh, there's no need," Reo said, eyes cutting clear across the table to match Kyouya's gaze without flinching. "He's already eaten."

Kyouya nodded once, but before he could leave so that I-pin wouldn't work herself up again, Reo set his chopsticks down and turned attentive eyes to his only child. Kyouya stopped in his tracks, and though by standing he towered over the others present, he couldn't help but tense under his father's eyes.

"We can't keep him forever, Kyouya."

Kyouya felt a sneer trying to turn his lips. "I'll figure something out," he returned evenly.

His father's eyes never wavered. "He has to go back to his family," Reo said. "After the- _disappearance_ of his mate, ownership falls to them-"

 _"I know."_

His father's eyes only softened. "I know you do," he said softly.

Kyouya climbed up the stairs swiftly, passing the closed door of the guest bedroom – the smell of strawberries and cream lingering in the air just beyond it.

* * *

The Athletic Festival at Namimori Middle School was the event of the season, the only time of year Alphas felt comfortable showcasing their abilities without needing to fear getting pulverized by Hibari or his army of followers. It was easy to mask dominance displays as simple feats of athletic prowess, and they took full advantage of the time to do what their teachers implicitly encouraged.

The entire school was divided into three teams, dynamics equally dispersed as much as possible so that everyone was on fairly even ground starting out. There were a multitude of events and all students were expected to participate in at least one, although because of widespread fear of escalation should an Alpha's dominance display disturb the relative equilibrium of Namichuu, the sports festival was only held for one day. Perhaps because of these factors, the competition between teams was really intense, and the fever of domination was ripe in the air.

The most intense and extreme of events was the Pole Knocking event, held at the climax of the sports festival. Leaders of each team climb and sit atop a tall wooden pole, held and defended by team members as competitors attempt to knock them down. It was a simple contest, made extraordinarily brutal given the fervor of the students – it was a no-holds-barred battle where team leaders had to be carried out on stretchers.

It was only natural, then, that team leaders and the bulk of the fighting force be Alphas, helped along by Beta males. Beta females and Omegas were generally pushed into the cheerleading category, and in the case of those in the latter category, participants in non-contact sports. That's why Tsuna isn't particularly surprised when he's slotted into the 100m run.

Team A then completely blindsides him by having Sasagawa Ryouhei as team leader.

The exuberant Beta male is not a bad pick for team leader – he has the passion, the competitive spirit, and the experience of leadership that he'd earned as the Boxing Club president. It had just been expected to have an Alpha be chosen, and it seems Tsuna isn't alone in his confusion at Team A's apparent leader.

"Sasagawa-senpai is team leader?" Tsuna murmured audibly. He's seated among his throng of classmates, between both Yamamoto and Gokudera, and is one of three Omegas in the room. He can't see the other Omegas but knew they were upperclassmen; they were seated among their own classmates, noticeably kept away from interacting with anyone not from their class.

Kyoko, seated in front of him with Kurokawa Hana, turned around with a bright smile. " _Oniisan_ challenged the other possible team leaders to a boxing match to win the rights of team leadership!" she explained to Tsuna. "After Takada-senpai lost, the others gave it to him."

Takada was the president of the sumo club and an Alpha. Tsuna could understand why the others were quick to concede – Sasagawa Ryouhei wasn't even _injured_.

 _"ULTIMATE WILL TO WIN!_ This will be the Team A motto for the sports festival! Unless we win, everything is meaningless!" Ryouhei yelled from the front of the large conference room held by their team. The students roared in approval, and the one teacher sent to keep watch on them – a very fatigued Inoue-sensei – was cringing into the corner at the noise.

 _He's so passionate,_ Tsuna thought.

"So annoying," Gokudera grumbled. "Can't he use a normal speaking voice?"

Hana snorted, not even bothering to turn around. "So says the monkey who spends half his day snarling," she cut back dryly.

"You want to say that to my face, bitch?" Gokudera predictably snarled.

Yamamoto's disarming laugh only had the infamous Smoking Bomb grinding his teeth, especially as he interjected a relaxed _"Now, now…"_

Before blood could be shed, Ryouhei's excited words once again regained their attention. "The pole knocking competition is the key to winning this year!" he said.

Gokudera blinked. "Pole knocking?" he echoed in confusion.

"It's another sports event," Tsuna replied. "Us first years are just the support for the upperclassmen though, since they have more strength."

Gokudera's obvious doubt regarding the strength of the upperclassmen was left unsaid, as Yamamoto's casual grin turned rather strained and Kurokawa groaned. Tsuna understood a second later – while Tsuna and Kyoko would likely be pushed into cheerleading for the last event, and perhaps even Gokudera and other Beta male first years would act as glorified errand runners, Yamamoto and Kurokawa, along with the other Alphas, would be enlisted to actively participate.

"Such a pain," Kurokawa muttered, cementing the fact that she had indeed been pushed into it.

Kyoko's smile had dropped from her face, replaced by one of obvious concern. Kurokawa only shook her head at Kyoko's expression, a silent dismissal of any further conversation.

"It's been tradition for the team representative to act as leader in the pole knocking event, which means I should be doing it," Ryouhei continued. Inoue-sensei managed to peel himself out of the shame corner to nod in agreement, clearly relieved Ryouhei understood this.

"BUT I WILL RESIGN!" Ryouhei roared.

Inoue-sensei was practically pulling out his own hair, "Then why did you want to be Team A's leader so badly?!"

"Rather than being a leader, _I want to battle as a soldier!"_ Ryouhei declared.

 _What selfish reasoning!_ everyone thought in shock.

Kurokawa put her face in her hands and heaved a heavy sigh.

"There is no need to worry!" Ryouhei continue spiritedly. "I have found an _extremely_ better leader!"

"But Takada is still in the hospital!" a third year cried out.

 _What did Sasagawa-senpai do to him?!_ Tsuna thought in alarm.

Ryouhei leveled a finger in a direction that Tsuna did not expect – namely, in _their class's_ direction. Both Yamamoto and Kurokawa froze, clearly not expecting to be singled out, and the rest of the room's eyes turned to them in bemused expectation.

Expectation which was cleanly and viciously uppercut straight into blatant disbelief at Ryouhei's proclamation: _"Sawada Tsuna from Class 1-B!"_

A pin could have dropped and it would have been audible in the unmoving silence that swallowed the room.

Then, Kurokawa dropped her face once more into her hands and groaned.

"Wait," Tsuna squeaked out.

"That freak knows the greatness of the Tenth?" Gokudera beamed. Yamamoto's approval was obvious by the wide smile on his face.

" _Wait_ ," Tsuna managed out in a slightly louder voice.

"What a good idea, Oniisan!" Kyoko cheered happily.

"Those who agree, raise your hands! We will decide by majority!" Ryouhei said.

"Are you crazy?!"

"Sawada's an Omega!"

"Are Omegas even allowed to compete?!"

Inoue-sensei, who had gone deathly-white, seemed to rouse at the outcries from the other students. "S-Sasagawa-kun, nominating an _Omega_ is inappropriate-"

"Sawada is an extreme warrior!" Ryouhei countered vehemently. "Just yesterday, he extremely knocked out a rival with one hit!"

Another silence fell on the room, and as one, everyone turned to stare disbelievingly at Tsuna.

Tsuna shook his head in denial. This situation was rapidly spinning out of control, and he didn't know how to get a handle on it. "That's-That's not true! I didn't knock her out-"

"She was extremely on the ground!"

Tsuna wanted to cry, he really did. "Yeah but she was still conscious!" he said defensively. Gokudera and Yamamoto noticeably tensed.

Kakei-san, their classmate, started whimpering.

"Oh, that Alpha girl?" Kyoko chirped, hammering the last nail in the coffin of Tsuna's defense.

Kurokawa's silent scream of frustration into her palms was drowned out by Gokudera's harried "You were attacked yesterday, Tenth?!"

"It wasn't an attack, she just, uh…" Got too much into his personal space and Tsuna had reflexively made her stop. "Uh…"

"Sawada is a true warrior!" Ryouhei claimed. "He should also extremely join the Boxing Club!"

 _Is that your true motive?!_ Tsuna wondered.

"Sasagawa-kun, for the last time, Omegas cannot join the Boxing Club!" Inoue-sensei screeched. "And they certainly cannot participate in the pole knocking-"

 _"That is_ _incorrect_."

Tsuna's eyes bugged out of his head when he saw Reborn casually strolling along the tabletop, wearing the traditional uniform and red armband of a Disciplinary Committee member. His trademark fedora was gone, his jet-black hair styled into the pompadour hairstyle Hibari's men so favored.

"The school rules don't forbid Omegas from participating in the pole knocking event," Reborn explained, and if Tsuna's ears weren't deceiving him, the baby-shaped hitman was trying to emulate the no-nonsense tones of Kusakabe Tetsuya. "All students are encouraged to participate, in fact."

"As support! To cheer on their classmates!" Inoue-sensei blew up in exasperation. "Not as active participants, and definitely not as team leaders!"

"Are you saying the Tenth isn't a suitable leader, you bastard?!" Gokudera yelled, jumping from his seat and pulling out a few sticks of dynamite.

Yamamoto was doing his smile-that's-not-a-smile thing, which had some of their classmates trying to edge away. "I think Tsuna is a great choice of leader," he said pleasantly. Iwasaki, a row down, shuddered.

"So there's no rule against it!" Ryouhei's attention span was clearly very limited, allowing him to focus only on what he believed to be important.

Tsuna was glaring at Reborn, who was nonchalantly watching the proceedings with his beady black eyes. "Reborn, what are you doing! They'll rip me to shreds!" he hissed quietly to his home tutor.

"If they're talking about leaders, it's obvious it should be the boss," Reborn replied. "Besides, it seems fun."

 _"You're just doing this for your own entertainment, aren't you!"_

Tsuna's intuition was spot-on: _Yes_.

"Alright, let's vote! Raise your hands if you agree with Sawada as extreme leader!" Ryouhei said. Inoue-sensei was flailing now, but the meeting had clearly spiraled out of his control as well, and he was left gaping and forgotten in the corner once more.

The students of the other classes clearly didn't think this was actually happening, but it was obvious Tsuna's class not only realized _yes, this was happening_ – they were also staring at Tsuna as if trying to gauge whether it was even safe to give their personal vote.

Ryouhei slammed a fist down atop the heavy wooden speaker's podium, splitting it in half like a cheap cardboard imitation even though it really, really wasn't. "RAISE YOUR HANDS!"

 _He's just giving an order!_ Tsuna realized in horror.

Gokudera turned on their classmates with a glower. "No one in our class is gonna refuse, right?" he growled.

Immediately, every single one of their classmates raised their hand. Kurokawa, the only exception, was glaring in Tsuna's direction with a curious lack of true heat to her gaze. "This is all your fault," she stated in a low hiss. Tsuna could not shake the feeling that the Alpha girl was not as burdened by this as she was pretending to be, but that did not make him feel even one bit better.

"It's decided then!" Ryouhei proclaimed. "The leader of Team A for the Pole Knocking event is Sawada Tsuna!"

 _Don't I get a say in this?!_ Tsuna thought, frozen stiff in his seat.

"But-" Inoue-sensei began, before being abruptly stopped when Reborn – now donned in the substitute-Maths-teacher disguise of Reboyama-sensei – used his gut as a landing pad, effectively knocking the actual teacher into unconsciousness.

"Excellent choice," Reborn piped up, to the wide-eyed horror of Tsuna. "The change has been made official."

Both Tsuna and Kurokawa dropped their faces into their hands and groaned in despair.

* * *

"I'm sure this Athletics Festival is going to be fun!" Kyoko was saying, cheerful and oblivious to the atmosphere around her. "I'll definitely cheer you on!"

"Thanks," Hana managed out, a sense of impending doom having long settled into her gut. She was keeping her eyes forward as they made their way home, but no matter how she wished to reject reality, it was impossible to ignore the sweet scent that lingered lightly in the air with every step.

"You'll definitely be a great team leader, Tsuna!" Yamamoto said, one arm thrown over Sawada's shoulders in a friendly manner.

Hana's eye twitched.

Somehow, Hana had missed Kyoko's developing relationship with Sawada. This newfound companionship had apparently reached the walking-home-together stage, as made clear when Kyoko fell into step with the Omega boy as they reached the school gates. Because Kyoko had been quick to join him, this meant Hana had to join as well because there was no way she was letting her friend walk into the lion's den alone.

The news about Sawada's newfound title of power had spread around the school like a wildfire, and by the time the automated messaging system notified students to leave school premises, everyone knew Team A's chosen leader was an Omega first year. That would have been cause for concern by itself, except Sawada was already infamous for his relationship with the volatile Gokudera and popular Yamamoto; he couldn't have been a more obvious target even if he had one painted on his back.

Hana didn't have a lot of one-on-one conversation experience with Sawada. Before he'd inadvertently given her the Creepy Glare, he'd kept to himself except for basic greetings; afterwards, he'd always been filtered through either Gokudera or Yamamoto, so it was mostly indirect. They hardly ever had casual conversations, especially with Gokudera always so willing to start a fight if anyone so much as looked at Sawada wrong (as Hana often did).

Which is why she's a little taken-aback by Sawada's despondent "I can't even climb a tree…"

"No time like the present to learn!" Kyoko's smile did not lose a single watt of brightness. Yamamoto agreed with a good-humored laugh.

The look of long-suffering on Sawada's face was so familiar that Hana had to remind herself that this was _Sawada_ , who regularly and willingly interacted with the most psychotic members of their class. She _should not_ be able to empathize with him.

"Sawada Tsuna!"

Hana and Kyoko jumped in surprise, but both Yamamoto and Sawada only turned at the declaration, the former smiling in curiosity and the latter resigned. The source of the loud exclamation was from up a telephone pole, and Hana stared in bewilderment at the girl clinging to the top like a monkey on a tree trunk.

"I am here for our duel!" the girl announced, still clinging to the pole.

The smile on Yamamoto's face dropped. Hana didn't need to be an Alpha to sense that a line had been crossed with the ever-affable Yamamoto.

"Duel?" Sawada echoed in confusion.

"For Reborn-chan's honor!"

Yamamoto relaxed, scary expression fading into pleasant confusion. Hana resolutely turned her eyes away from her terrifying classmate and fixed on the Alpha girl ranting about… something or another, it was hard to understand because the diatribe mostly consisted of _"children are angels of pure hearts"_ and Hana felt like she was having a stroke because _nothing made sense_.

Why was this girl talking about children? (The horrible, smelly little devils!) Why was an _Alpha_ challenging an _Omega_ to a duel? Why was _Sawada_ the source of her ire? _Why was she on a telephone pole?!_

"Oh, it's the girl that Tsuna-kun knocked out," Kyoko stated, eyes lit in understanding.

Yamamoto's smile dropped again.

 _Someone's going to die,_ Hana thought in a moment of absolute clarity.

Sawada seemed to come to this conclusion too, his tired expression morphing into a small frown, amber eyes flicking to Yamamoto in concern before turning back to the strange girl. "Uh, you're Miura Haru, right? I…don't really think a duel is necessary," he tried diplomatically. "But can you at least come down here?"

The girl's bold expression abruptly changed into defeat. "…Yes, I think that'd be better too," she agreed, voice weakening. "But…now I can't get down."

Hana and Sawada snapped at the same time. _"Are you an idiot?!"_

Yamamoto laughed lightly. The sound of it chilled Hana to the very marrow of her bones. "No time like the present to learn," he said cheerfully, an eerie and much less kind echo to Kyoko's words from before. Hana automatically translated it to: _let her fall._

"I can do it!" Miura said, a mix of determination and desperation in her tone of voice. "If I can't do something as small as this, then I have no business getting involved with Reborn-chan!"

"You already have no business getting involved with Reborn!" Sawada snapped.

Miura's head whipped around to give the Omega boy a baleful glare, one arm lashing out to point accusingly in his direction. "You're the one-"

For all her fire, it was clear that she was not physically capable of such multitasking, as she abruptly lost balance – flailing mid-air with both arms, legs managing to hold her weight for all of a few seconds before she fell back and into the air.

Hana was too slow to react, some innate instinct recognizing an Alpha and immediately identifying the other as an unknown competitor; Yamamoto had hesitated, his natural urge of wanting to help someone in need battling with his instinct to covet Sawada and eliminate a potential rival for the Omega's attention.

It seemed Kyoko and Sawada had no such reservations.

They rushed forward, the Beta girl a step behind Sawada, but this allowed Sawada to cushion the majority of Miura's fall and Kyoko caught Sawada's own recoil, and the three fell to the ground in a jumbled heap.

 _"Kyoko!"_ Hana screamed, at the same time as Yamamoto's worried _"Tsuna!"_

Miura rolled off first, dazed but unharmed. Hana practically pushed the other Alpha girl aside, reaching towards the tangled limbs of Sawada and Kyoko, but was beat to the punch when Sawada flinched back, eyes blazing as he turned golden irises to the Beta girl he'd inadvertently landed on.

Kyoko sat up, wincing. Her elbows, from where they'd collided and scraped against the asphalt as she bore the weight of the others, were bleeding sluggishly, and she halted moving when she'd attempted to move her right leg, darting a glance to her foot with a pained whimper.

"Kyoko-san, what hurts?" Sawada was asking. There was nothing hesitant in his posture now, certainty and concern in his voice as he glanced over her.

Kyoko was clearly in pain, but she had stopped whimpering and was starting to gain the stubborn edge of resilience she always did when she didn't want people to get worried for her. "I may have sprained my ankle," she said, testing it again before halting abruptly as another pained whimper forced itself out of her lips.

Hana knelt down, motioning for Kyoko to climb onto her back. The Beta girl stammered out some hesitations before giving in to her friend, and only when Kyoko's arms were wrapped securely around her neck did Hana stand to her full height. She turned and shot the Alpha girl, this Miura Haru, a withering glare – but it went unnoticed, Miura's large brown eyes instead locked on to Kyoko's bloodied elbows.

"I'm taking Kyoko home," Hana stated, then blinked a bit, taken-aback by her own action – why had she said that? It wasn't like she had to report to Sawada or anything.

Sawada nodded in understanding, his own expression reminiscent of that time in the stairwell, and Hana found her eyes looking anywhere but directly at him. "Yamamoto, can you go with them?" he asked softly.

"I don't need an escort," Hana huffed out, still not making eye contact. She was certain that's how you caught their crazy.

Sawada's tone never changed from that low, gentle tone that shredded to bits that Alpha voice in her mind screaming at her to subdue him. "I know," he said, amber eyes turning away from Kyoko and to Miura. "But I'd like to speak with Miura-san alone."

An Omega left alone with an Alpha? Even though they had not yet Presented, to leave an Omega alone in the mercies of an Alpha that had shown such a trend of impulsive behavior was sure to draw negative attention. The street itself was hardly populated, out of the way of major walkways and away from passers-by that could keep an eye on the Alpha so that the Omega could be protected by the invisible bubble of society.

It was telling, then, that not one person tried to dissuade him.

After all, it wasn't _Tsuna_ that needed to be protected.

* * *

"I would have preferred to drink with a beautiful woman."

Hibari Reo smiled into his glass of hard liquor, eyes dancing in amusement. The sun had set some time ago, and the night air was cool on his skin. He'd opened the tatami doors to the back courtyard, alight with the sounds of nocturnal insects. It was a pleasant and quiet evening – as he'd expected, with the absence of the sweet and easily-flustered I-Pin.

"You'll be staying in Namimori for a bit longer this time, ne?" Reo retorted. "You can spare one evening for an old friend."

Dr. Shamal leveled him with an unimpressed look, but his expression quickly shifted into matching good humor. "To old friends," he agreed, tipping his glass in Reo's direction.

Reo returned the gesture with a wider smile.

 _"To old friends."_

* * *

 **A/N** : Shamal Shamal SHAMAL! _He's heeeeere!_

-Haru is taking so much longer than I thought she would lol

 _Edit Note_ : I changed some minor information in previous chapters because I somehow screwed up my own timeline. Anyway, Tsuna and co. are first years for now, although they're close to moving into their 2nd year.

 _**Please be kind and drop a review. ;)** _


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